China Mobile to Subsidize iPhone

[MacRumors]

A new report claims that the ongoing negotiations between Apple and China Mobile are making some headway. According to an "insider", China Mobile will be relying on handset subsidies to bring the iPhone to China.

This new plan apparently takes the place of revenue sharing plans that had been a sticking point of negotiations in the past.

Article Link

[chainprayer]

it will be interesting to see how at&t and china mobile mirror off each other

[alphaod]

Wow. It's rare for people to buy subsidized phones... great this will make people in China cheap and into free/discounted phones!

[kntgsp]

Originally Posted by chainprayer

it will be interesting to see how at&t and china mobile mirror off each other

The only difference will be if you go over your usage allotment, you're sent to a work camp and then a reeducation center.

[lazyrighteye]

The iPhone becomes immeasurably less cool when your government bans access to the interwebs.

[Rybold]

This is HUGE news for Apple! With the original iPhone, it was sold only in the U.S. Now Apple is selling the iPhone3G GLOBALLY! Apple has gone GLOBAL! This is HUGE for the investors and the company and the company's success! "Apple ... is now selling the iPhone in 43 countries." ..and now ... TO CHINA! The millions of Chinese that are joining the ranks of the affluent class every day will be standing in lines to buy "designed in California" iPhones!

Here is a better article http://money.cnn.com/2008/08/29/tech...ce=yahoo_quote

[MacTheSpoon]

All right, well, hope the negotiations proceed apace. Seems like we've been hearing China rumors forever without anything concrete materializing.

[Aznsensation45]

Originally Posted by MacTheSpoon

All right, well, hope the negotiations proceed apace. Seems like we've been hearing China rumors forever without anything concrete materializing.

ha, that is so true. There were so many rumors about this topic already, but nothing concrete. Hopefully they get it soon!

[zephead]

Originally Posted by Rybold

This is HUGE news for Apple! With the original iPhone, it was sold only in the U.S. Now Apple is selling the iPhone3G GLOBALLY! Apple has gone GLOBAL! This is HUGE for the investors and the company and the company's success!

Where have you been the past month or so?

[sjo]

Originally Posted by MacRumors

A new report claims that the ongoing negotiations between Apple and China Mobile are making some headway. According to an "insider", China Mobile will be relying on handset subsidies to bring the iPhone to China.

This new plan apparently takes the place of revenue sharing plans that had been a sticking point of negotiations in the past.

Article Link

there may or may not be negotiations between china mobile and apple regarding iphone, but this particular rumor is plain stupid; revenue sharing plans haven't been sticking point for apple for ages, none of the operators offering iphone 3g is sharing revenue.

second, there's no iphone 3g compatible 3g network in china to speak of and it will take a good while before there is. they're going to roll out their national 3g version (td-cdma), and that's not compatible with iphone. the 3g variant iphone requires will only be launched after td-cdma network is up and running. it's quite safe to not expect wcdma networks to launch in at least a year, and even after that it will take a good while before they are commonly available.

and third, chinese are extremely technology conscious, especially those who can afford iphone + monthly plan. for them, even if iphone would be launched next week in china, it'd lack the novelty factor.

[cleanup]

Originally Posted by kntgsp

The only difference will be if you go over your usage allotment, you're sent to a work camp and then a reeducation center.

Was that really neccessary? Or remotely true?

Anyways, I wonder if the iPhones will be unlocked. All 3 phones I've purchased in China have been unlocked?

[Xavier]

Thats Jobs plan. To get the iPhone in every country and then take over the world by using the self destruct device in every iPhone.

[ilfn143]

would it be cheaper in china since they don't have to pay for shipping?

[kntgsp]

Originally Posted by cleanup

Was that really neccessary? Or remotely true?

Anyways, I wonder if the iPhones will be unlocked. All 3 phones I've purchased in China have been unlocked?

It was a joke.



How foolish of me to think that actually happens

[idannyb]

More details here regarding Apple’s probable development of a TD iPhone 3G (TD-SCDMA) + pre-sale to China Mobile and subsidy…
http://idannyb.wordpress.com/2008/08...-for-endusers/
http://idannyb.wordpress.com/category/td-scdma/
http://idannyb.wordpress.com/2008/07...-td-iphone-3g/
http://idannyb.wordpress.com/2008/06...ed-for-a-deal/
http://idannyb.wordpress.com/2008/06...ecom-industry/
Dan Butterfield
Editor, iPhonAsia

[macduke]

Interesting that REVENUE SHARING was actually a sticking point with the Chinese. I mean, hasn't that been the official policy with their citizens for decades??

Sorry, I can't resist while I'm on the topic:

In Communist Russia, the revenue shares YOU!

[pinwanger]

Subsidize iPhone? That's weird, I've never heard of China Mobile subsidize any phone what so ever, or needed to. most people spent couple hundred dollars on cell each year anyway. my dad's cdma/gsm phone was like $1000

[idannyb]

http://www.intomobile.com/2008/07/20...-handsets.html
In an effort to push TD-SCDMA enabled handset sales forward, China Mobile has decided to (logically) subsidize them. So far sales numbers have fallen short of expectations, and the Chinese mobile operator hopes that the move will see more people switching to 3G prior to and during the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

And the next step is ...
http://idannyb.wordpress.com/2008/08...-3g-standards/

[DanielJvdBerg]

Originally Posted by sjo

there may or may not be negotiations between china mobile and apple regarding iphone, but this particular rumor is plain stupid; revenue sharing plans haven't been sticking point for apple for ages, none of the operators offering iphone 3g is sharing revenue.

How are you so certain? I have been told by t-mobile employees in the Netherlands that t-mobile DOES share revenue, and for that reason they have fixed plans without any addons like 1000 texts for €9,99. Which just sucks. Thanks apple for screwing that up..

Ps subsidizing is normal in the EU anyway.

[Rybold]

Originally Posted by sjo

there's no iphone 3g compatible 3g network in china to speak of and it will take a good while before there is. they're going to roll out their national 3g version (td-cdma), and that's not compatible with iphone. the 3g variant iphone requires will only be launched after td-cdma network is up and running. it's quite safe to not expect wcdma networks to launch in at least a year, and even after that it will take a good while before they are commonly available.

Interesting. I wonder how easy it will be to make a 3G chipset just for Td-Cdma. Will it be expensive, or just a simple change? Take note Chinese Government! : by using a different technology than the rest of the world, you are creating problems for your own people! When they are on international business (roaming), then will not be able to communicate as quickly as those they are doing business with and potential competitors. Your business people will not have a fair advantage. Heed the warning! If you are smart, you will use the same technology that THE REST OF THE WORLD is using ... remember, it is a GLOBAL economy now. Any attempts to isolate yourselves will only cause your people to be left behind. Yes, left behind.

[winterspan]

Originally Posted by Rybold

Interesting. I wonder how easy it will be to make a 3G chipset just for Td-Cdma. Will it be expensive, or just a simple change? Take note Chinese Government! : by using a different technology than the rest of the world, you are creating problems for your own people! When they are on international business (roaming), then will not be able to communicate as quickly as those they are doing business with and potential competitors. Your business people will not have a fair advantage. Heed the warning! If you are smart, you will use the same technology that THE REST OF THE WORLD is using ... remember, it is a GLOBAL economy now. Any attempts to isolate yourselves will only cause your people to be left behind. Yes, left behind.

I have no doubt that they will soon give in and just implement standard W-CDMA/UMTS without paying any western company for the patent licenses... People think they didn't implement normal UMTS/3G because they didn't want to pay the royalties, when in fact it had more to do with pride and ego since they didn't develop the technology in China. The royalties thing is a non-issue, they'll just not pay anyone a dime. They rip-off IP from every country around the world routinely, I see no reason why they wouldn't do it in this case.

[bendodson]

Originally Posted by Rybold

This is HUGE news for Apple! With the original iPhone, it was sold only in the U.S. Now Apple is selling the iPhone3G GLOBALLY!

How do you work that out? The original iPhone was available in 6 countries; USA, Ireland, the UK, France, Germany, and Austria. At least it better have been or I spent the best part of a year imagining I had a phone...

[asouns]

Originally Posted by lazyrighteye

The iPhone becomes immeasurably less cool when your government bans access to the interwebs.

I've worked there for 2 years, that I have to say the internet is not banned except some illegal porno websites, I never experienced any problems with the websites I visited . it's just some malicious rumors say that china ban internet recently. it would be great if china mobile would brings in iphone

[billandy]

HOWEVER, there's a much bigger problem than that...

due to local regulations, no mobile phone is allowed to have wi-fi. currently all the models nokia and others are selling, yes that includes n95 and other top range products, all have wi-fi stripped out...

will jobs say yes to producing an iphone without wifi?

AND...

the 3g network under construction is based on td-scdma standard but the world standard is wcdma

that's the two issues apple MUST sort out before even starts to think of selling iphone in china

[Saladinos]

Originally Posted by Rybold

This is HUGE news for Apple! With the original iPhone, it was sold only in the U.S. Now Apple is selling the iPhone3G GLOBALLY! Apple has gone GLOBAL! This is HUGE for the investors and the company and the company's success! "Apple ... is now selling the iPhone in 43 countries." ..and now ... TO CHINA! The millions of Chinese that are joining the ranks of the affluent class every day will be standing in lines to buy "designed in California" iPhones!

Here is a better article http://money.cnn.com/2008/08/29/tech...ce=yahoo_quote

Apple has been global for ages. They're a pretty established company.