Ingram serves up BlackBerry PlayBook to UK channel

Distributor makes RIM its key mobility offering in UK

Ingram Micro has signed up to carry the BlackBerry PlayBook in the UK as part of a wider push for troubled smartphone maker Research In Motion (RIM).

RIM is among those to have struggled to gain traction in a nascent tablet market dominated by Apple. In December it swallowed a $485m (£307m) charge relating to the valuation of its PlayBook inventory in response to poor sales.

At the time RIM co-chief executive Mike Lazaridis stressed the ailing vendor remained committed to the space, arguing that the launch of its new OS 2.0 software in February would make it a compelling tablet for both consumers and enterprises.

Ingram agrees, adding that the recently announced BlackBerry Business Cloud Services for Microsoft Office persuaded it to make BlackBerry its "key mobility offering".

Simultaneously, Ingram has inked an exclusive distribution partnership with GPXS, an authorised supplier of BlackBerry training courses.

Matt Sanderson, managing director of Ingram Micro UK, said: "Our continued growth in the telecommunications segment and the ongoing convergence of software and mobile technologies, enhanced with the inclusion of Microsoft Office capabilities on BlackBerry smartphones and the addition of the BlackBerry PlayBook tablet to our product portfolio, is driving BlackBerry as a strong platform for mobile users of Microsoft Office 365."

RIM UK managing director Stephen Bates said the agreement with Ingram would allow the vendor to boost its UK coverage.

"We are leveraging our strengths in communications, social integration and productivity with their strengths in unified communications, software solutions and overall channel reach," he added.