Telstra, Australia's largest mobile carrier, has issued today a press-release that contains both good and bad news for the mobile users in the country (or at least for those users who like BlackBerry handsets).

The good news is that the much-talked-about BlackBerry Bold 9000 has reached Australia and is already in the hands of its first customer. The bad news is that regular users will only get the new smartphone starting the second half of September. So who's the lucky user who got the Bold so early? Well, it's Mr. Nigel Milan, the CEO of RFDS (Royal Flying Doctors Service) - a non-profit charitable organization that provides aeromedical health services.

"The new BlackBerry Bold device on Telstra's Next G network will enable us to continue to stay informed while on the move, manage complex tasks and deliver state-of-the-art health services. The new BlackBerry will be a valuable addition to our communication assets," Mr. Milan commented.

Mr. Ross Fielding, Telstra's Product Management Executive Director, further added that "Bold is everything you love about the BlackBerry email experience super-charged by the speeds, extensive national 3G coverage and unique services available over Telstra's Next G network."

The availability of BlackBerry Bold ahead of its release for the masses is not something that should surprise users, as the new smartphone is already owned by several celebrities in the US, including Lindsay Lohan and John Mayer. Of course, neither of them uses the Bold for charitable purposes, as Mr. Milan will probably do, but that's another story.

Back to the ordinary Australian users; Telstra says that business customers will be able to get the BlackBerry Bold "for $0 upfront", probably meaning that, with a hefty data plan and a contract agreement for two years, the handset costs nothing. Which is, once again, good news.