Research In Motion (RIM) today announced the Australian launch of BlackBerry App World, the application store for BlackBerry smartphones. However, only free apps will be available at launch. Paid applications will be accessible at a later, to be advised date.
BlackBerry App World was previously only available in selected overseas markets, including the US and Canada.
In the US, App World users require a PayPal account to purchase applications, though it's not known whether this will be the case in Australia.
BlackBerry App World includes a front page carousel that showcases featured applications, a top downloads category and the ability to search for applications.
"BlackBerry App World makes it very easy for our customers to discover and download a wide variety of applications for their BlackBerry smartphone," said Adele Beachley, RIM's managing director for Australia and New Zealand.
Downloadable applications include BlackBerry Messenger, Bloomberg Mobile, Dictionary.com, Facebook, Flickr, MySpace and UberTwitter.
Australian BlackBerry users can download BlackBerry App World directly to their RIM smartphone by visiting www.blackberry.com/appworld or mobile.blackberry.com.
The App World store can be accessed over both Wi-Fi and mobile phone networks, and is also available on a desktop or notebook computer.
