New York  - Research In Motion (RIM) Ltd has opened an online software store for its BlackBerry phones as it seeks to take on Apple Inc, the pioneer of the trend.

The online store opened Wednesday and is initially available to customers in the United States, Canada and Britain.

BlackBerry App World would offer about 1,000 programs in its first week, including games, music applications, Facebook, Myspace and transmissions from the Bloomberg financial news agency, The New York Times and the music channel MTV.

The introduction of BlackBerry App World would follow in other countries, Canada-based RIM said Wednesday without naming specific dates.

RIM introduced the online store as it seeks to expand its customer base from primarily business users.

Apple was the first to offer such a marketplace. Its App Store opened in July and offers more than 15,000 programs.

Microsoft Corp has also announced that it would also open one for its Windows Mobile operating system as mobile phone makers and operators seek to expand the devices beyond taking calls, receiving e-mails while on the go and surfing the web away from the computer. (dpa)