Vatican to transmit daily press bulletins over hand-held device

Published: 2003-10-01

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Months ago the director of the Vatican press office joined the legion of corporate leaders traveling the world with a BlackBerry in hand, always ready to take a phone call or send an e-mail. Now the Vatican press office is offering its instant news alerts, the daily press bulletin and the articles of the Vatican Information Service to accredited journalists who sign up with TIM, the Italian mobile telephone company, for BlackBerry service. The handheld device functions as a mobile phone, but also as an "always connected" terminal for sending and receiving e-mail and surfing the Internet. Officials from TIM, the only Italian company offering BlackBerry service, unveiled the new service at a Sept. 30 Vatican press conference with Joaquin Navarro-Valls, papal spokesman and director of the Vatican press office.

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