Research In Motion (RIM) today unveiled details of its new HSDPA-compatible BlackBerry device, called BlackBerry Bold. The product features a 2-megapixel camera with video recording capability, a media player for watching movies and managing music collections, and has twice the screen resolution of the current Curve model. Last month, reports suggested the device was to be delayed from an original June launch date, a move that would as a consequence see it face strong competition from other high-profile device launches such as a potential 3G iPhone. Today’s update from RIM will do little to quash such doubts, however, as the manufacturer states only that the device will launch globally this summer. RIM also did not announce a price for the Bold, nor agreements with specific operators. In a separate development, RIM announced today that, along with Thomson Reuters, it will launch a US$150 million venture capital fund that will invest in applications and services for the BlackBerry and other mobile platforms.

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reports today that South Korea is creating an exception in its rules so that BlackBerry devices can be sold by local operator SK Telecom. According to the report, government regulators said over the weekend that they approved a plan for the operator to sell BlackBerry devices from next month. The firms were prohibited by rules on mobile phone design that gave an edge in the market to domestic manufacturers such as Samsung and LG. There is no word yet on whether the government will allow the sale of other foreign-manufactured devices. Last month it was reported that Nokia plans to return to South Korea ahead of an expected opening up of the country’s handset regulations.