RIM buys Torch Mobile browser company

BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion has picked up Torch Mobile, the company behind the Iris handheld browser.

Iris, which is based on the WebKit rendering engine, is currently available for Windows Mobile handsets. The company also has a Web widget platform that can support Google Gadgets, Apple dashboard widgets and Yahoo widgets.

On its Web site, Torch Mobile said its developers would "join RIM's global organization and will now be focused on utilizing our WebKit-based mobile browser expertise to contribute to the ongoing enhancement of the BlackBerry platform."

"Torch Mobile's team of highly skilled developers has been actively involved in Open Source development and includes contributors, Commiters and Reviewers of the WebKit project," the company noted. "As part of RIM, these developers will continue to be active participants in the WebKit development community."

The precise details of the acquisition have not been made public.

This article was first published as a blog post on ZDNet UK.