Earlier today we told you about a BlackBerry service outage that started a few days ago in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia and has now spread to the Americas. Unfortunately, the outage is still going on as of this writing, but not long ago RIM held an impromptu press conference to explain the cause of the problem and what it's doing to fix it. According to RIM, the issue was caused when a core switch failed and then its backup failed as well. Because of this, a large backlog of messages accumulated and now RIM is working through it in order to return service to normal. RIM also mentioned that the outage is affecting users in varying degrees, with some BlackBerry users having no problems at all while some are seeing message delays or even a complete loss of services. The company says that resolving the issue is its top priority, but it did not mention when the outage might end.

Although this service outage is definitely a pain for any BlackBerry addict that may be having issues with email or BBM, it's good to see RIM keeping its users in the loop, both with today's press conference and with the BlackBerry Service Update page on its official website. We'll pass any updates on the situation along to you as we get them. BlackBerry folk, be sure to let us know if you're having any kind of problems with your service!

UPDATE: Sounds like things are starting to get back on track for BlackBerry users. RIM has updated its BlackBerry Service Update page with the status of its services in various regions across the globe, saying that email systems are operating and that BBM is online and passing traffic successfully. Browsing services are also back online in the U.S. The full statement from RIM CIO Robin Bienfait is below.

Service update from RIM CIO

To All BlackBerry Customers:

I want to first apologize for the service interruptions and delays many of you have been experiencing this week. I also wanted to connect with you directly, give you an update on the service issues we are trying to solve, and answer some of the questions and concerns you’ve expressed.

You’ve depended on us for reliable, real-time communications, and right now we’re letting you down. We are taking this very seriously and have people around the world working around the clock to address this situation. We believe we understand why this happened and we are working to restore normal service levels in all markets as quickly as we can.

Here is the current status of service and issues for the various regions that were impacted:

For Europe, Middle East, India and Africa (EMEIA):

Email systems are operating and we are continuing to clear any backlogged messages. Support teams are working to minimize the impact on our customers.
BBM traffic is online and traffic is passing successfully
Browsing is temporarily unavailable as the Support teams monitor service stability and continue to assess when this service can be safely brought online
Support teams have added capacity to help with message delivery between regions and continents
For Canada and Latin America:

Email systems are operating and we are continuing to clear any backlogged messages. Support teams are working to minimize the impact on our customers
BBM and browsing services are online and traffic is passing successfully (except for three carrier networks in Latin America that are serviced by the EMEIA infrastructure – browsing is temporarily unavailable for those three carrier networks)
Support teams are investigating reports of BBM delays
For the U.S.:

Email systems are operating and we are continuing to clear any backlogged messages. Support teams are working to minimize the impact on our customers.
Support teams have added capacity to help with message delivery between regions and continents
BBM and browsing services are online and traffic is passing successfully
Support teams are investigating reports of BBM delays
We will provide regular updates on BlackBerry.com, RIM.com and via our social channels. We are doing everything in our power to restore regular service everywhere and to restore your trust in us.

Yours sincerely,

Robin Bienfait
Chief Information Officer, RIM

Via Phone Scoop