Millions of BlackBerry users on three continents were left without Internet services Monday night following a major breakdown in Research in Motion services.

Blackberry users in Europe, Africa and the Middle East were unable to access the internet, send or receive e-mail and use RIM's instant messaging service. RIM didn't give an explanation, but users have suggested the blackout was caused by a network outage at a Research in Motion datacenter in Slough in the UK.

Blackberry users began reporting problems with Internet services at mid-morning but it wasn't until the afternoon that RIM acknowledged the problem, further infuriating users.

"We are working to resolve an issue currently impacting some BlackBerry subscribers in Europe, the Middle East and Africa," RIM said in a statement. "We're investigating, and we apologize to our customers for any inconvenience caused while this is resolved."

This blackout is the latest in a long line of problems the company is facing, RIM has been struggling in the smartphone market, especially against rivals Apple and Google's Android-based smartphones. RIM stock has slumped and revenue was down to $319 million in the last quarter. Users have also criticized the manufacturer with their slow response time in solving service problems. Blackberry devices rely on a network infrastructure that RIM operates and this places an extra burden on RIM's infrastructure.

Later on Monday, RIM reported that it had restored e-mail services.

RIM issued this statement:

"As an update, we can confirm that BlackBerry e-mail services have been restored. Some customers may continue to experience delays with instant messaging and browsing services and our technical teams are working to return services to normal operation as quickly as possible. We apologize to our customers for any inconvenience and we will continue to provide updates as new information becomes available."