must-have application

Speaking after his meeting with lawmakers from the House of Representatives on Wednesday, Tifatul defended RIM and its BBM service, which has been seen as a "must-have application" among middle-class Indonesians.

"No, we don't have that plan," said Tifatul when asked on the possibility that the government could end the service on all BlackBerry smartphones.

"BlackBerry is a must for the Indonesian public because here it has 5 million users," he added.

The BBM service is viewed as the major factor in BlackBerry sales remaining robust in Indonesia. Many BlackBerry users throughout the country have felt reluctant to switch to other brands, due to the usefulness of the application.

Globally, however, the product is struggling to compete with Apple and Android smartphones.

Tifatul says

Qatar buys Raffles hotels in Singapore, Paris

Associated Press, Doha, Qatar

A Qatar-owned company says it has taken over the famous Raffles Hotel Singapore and an affiliated luxury hotel in Paris in the latest high-profile acquisitions by the energy-rich Gulf state.

The Qatar National Hotels Co. said Saturday that it recently took ownership of the 125-year-old Raffles Hotel Singapore and Le Royal Monceau Raffles hotel in Paris.

It did not disclose financial terms in the deal with Toronto-based Fairmont Raffles Hotels International, which had owned both hotels.

State-owned Qatari companies have been snapping up investments at a brisk pace in recent months, including stakes in European energy companies, Germany's largest builder Hochtief AG and majority ownership in the French football team Paris Saint-Germain.

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/01/14/qatar-buys-raffles-hotels-singapore-paris.html

Prince Alwaleed bin Talal sell Four Seasons Hotel Jakarta and Mövenpick Dar es Salaam for $93m

Kingdom Hotel Investments (KHI), a wholly owned subsidiary of Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), chaired by HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, sell the entire ownership of the Four Seasons Hotel Jakarta and Movenpick Dar es Salaam in Tanzania with a value of U.S. $ 93 million.

As reported Arab News, Prince Alwaleed completed two transactions in the fourth quarter of 2011. Prince Alwaleed commented, "These transactions mark yet another step for KHI towards the realization of the value of its investments."