Orange Loses iPhone Exclusivity in France

No need for unlock?

It would be nice if this was worldwide and got rid of the need for yellowsn0w. but i doubt it will happen anywhere else.

We'll see how this goes... I wonder if other carriers will exnay the visual voicemail? I like to believe there's a reason is so tight about its partnerships. And I'm pretty damn sure the french gov't doesn't know more about telecom than Apple + Orange. We'll see!

Hopefully this will make officially unlocked iPhones available in the US without a contract.

roger6106 said:

Hopefully this will make officially unlocked iPhones available in the US without a contract.

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why would a ruling in another country affect Apple's business practices in the US? the mind boggles.

PlaceofDis said:

why would a ruling in another country affect Apple's business practices in the US? the mind boggles.

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I think he meant unlocked iphones from France making their way to the US, like being sold on ebay or something.

bigjnyc said:

I think he meant unlocked iphones from France making their way to the US, like being sold on ebay or something.

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Actually he said "official", a ruling in france has no bearing in the US or any other country, and besides the ruling only says other carriers have to be able to sell the Phone that DOES NOT mean they have to sell it unlocked or even without a contract, so it may not even help ebay sales, but I guess one could hope.

david803sc said:

Actually he said "official", a ruling in france has no bearing in the US or any other country, and besides the ruling only says other carriers have to be able to sell the Phone that DOES NOT mean they have to sell it unlocked or even without a contract, so it may not even help ebay sales, but I guess one could hope.

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I think by "official" he meant officially in France. Doesn't seem too Apple-like to sell an unlocked one, though.

Harpo said:

I think by "official" he meant officially in France. Doesn't seem too Apple-like to sell an unlocked one, though.

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Exactly. I know that you can purchase ones that have been unlocked, but there is no guarantee that future software updates won't break that. If Apple is forced to sell the iPhone through other carriers in France they might end up selling officially unlocked iPhones, which would then make it to the US.

What's to stop Apple from simply not selling the iPhone in France any longer?

Seems like a move Apple might make. "We can't have just one carrier in France? Ok, how about no carrier then, we'll take our business elsewhere..."

What socialists (the French). Apple can't even choose who they do and do not want to do business with in that effed up country.

roger6106 said:

Hopefully this will make officially unlocked iPhones available in the US without a contract.

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They already sell unlocked iphones in France, UK and some other countries. But they're still restricted to the country they are bought in, probably in order to avoid people distributing them in the US and other countries.

I don't see how this ruling would change this, they'll still be sold in France and only work with french SIMs.

Badandy said:

What socialists (the French). Apple can't even choose who they do and do not want to do business with in that effed up country.

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Good point. Choice for the consumer is a terrible thing, much like socialism.

Good for Apple. Lately they don't seem to be interested in exclusive deals anymore, so this probably just spares them from waiting till it expires. They'll probably sell more iPhones this way. Bad for Orange.

fabian9 said:

I don't see how this ruling would change this, they'll still be sold in France and only work with french SIMs.

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Are you sure? Many Germans seem to be importing Belgian, Italian and Czech iPhones. I haven't heard about country locks.
The unlocked iPhones available in France, by the way, are not imported because they are more expensive.

fabian9 said:

They already sell unlocked iphones in France, UK and some other countries. But they're still restricted to the country they are bought in, probably in order to avoid people distributing them in the US and other countries.

I don't see how this ruling would change this, they'll still be sold in France and only work with french SIMs.

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They sell unlocked iphones in the uk.... hmm that sounds a little too good to be true my friend????

SmartIndianKid said:

Good point. Choice for the consumer is a terrible thing, much like socialism.

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Yup, choice for the consumer is so 80's. Who would want that?
Are we that stupid? LOL.

bytethese said:

What's to stop Apple from simply not selling the iPhone in France any longer?

Seems like a move Apple might make. "We can't have just one carrier in France? Ok, how about no carrier then, we'll take our business elsewhere..."

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Nothing to stop them doing that - apart from the millions upon millions of Euros of sales they'd miss out on and the damage it would do to Apple's brand in France. That'd be real smart.

Apple has formed agreements with only one provider in so many countries because it enhances the aura of exclusivity around the product, means they can get some guarantees about the user experience (why risk complaints about the product because of the crappy 3G network it's being used on?) and, most of all, because it makes them money. The carrier has to pay more than usual up front, subsidising the phone, but also gets a load of new customers who're all paying for data. The "Apple knows best" defence which seems to be emerging is cute, but perhaps some people here should consider if Apple is just trying to do what's best for Apple - whether that's good or bad for customers.

anim8or said:

They sell unlocked iphones in the uk.... hmm that sounds a little too good to be true my friend????

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No, only pay-as-you-go phones. Still tied to O2!

I'd be surprised if that ruling is upheld as its just crazy and illogical. Though if you read the article its only an interim ruling pending a final decision, so the final decision itself could overturn the interim ruling.

I'm sure it will take Apple a while to sort out an agreement with other carriers, then they've got to be happy with their network being compatible with the phone, properly test the visual voice mail, then it will probably take them a while longer to allocate stock and so on.

babyj said:

I'd be surprised if that ruling is upheld as its just crazy and illogical.

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Ummm... Why is it 'crazy and illogical'..? Just because the US government lets big business walk all over consumers, it doesn't mean the rest of the world has to follow... It's no wonder the phone business in the US is so far behind the rest of the world with that kind of attitude

JMP said:

Yup, choice for the consumer is so 80's. Who would want that?
Are we that stupid? LOL.

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Fotek2001 said:

Ummm... Why is it 'crazy and illogical'..? Just because the US government lets big business walk all over consumers, it doesn't mean the rest of the world has to follow... It's no wonder the phone business in the US is so far behind the rest of the world with that kind of attitude

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There's nothing wrong with consumer choice. The problem is when companies start having their rights trampled on*. If you have a problem with the way a company is doing business, speak with your wallet.

If this decision is made final then I wouldn't be surprised if Apple pulls out of France just to spite the government. I wouldn't blame them because that's what I would do if that happened to me.

*Yes I agree that consumer rights come before company rights.

roger6106 said:

Hopefully this will make officially unlocked iPhones available in the US without a contract.

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I doubt a ruling in France, of all countries, will affect the Free Market Economy here in the US, even if it is currently on the downturn.

Hooray for a government sticking its nose where it doesn't belong!

QuarterSwede said:

The problem is when companies start having their rights trampled on*.

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Companies don't have rights... Unless I'm missing something they never did and if you can explain why they should, I'd like to hear it.

QuarterSwede said:

There's nothing wrong with consumer choice. The problem is when companies start having their rights trampled on. If you have a problem with the way a company is doing business, speak with your wallet.

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I personally have no Pb with the way company is doing business.
However, I do have a Pb when that company choses on my behalf what, or what no to do, or who I have to do business with (carrier), should I choose to buy their product.
The logical answer would be:"Don't buy an iPhone then".

But what if I want an iPhone, do I have to get an AT&T (or Orange) contract?
No. When I buy a set of pickups for a guitar, the maker does not tell me I HAVE TO put them on a specific guitar. When I buy a car, I don't have to buy gas from any specific distributor...

QuarterSwede said:

If this decision is made final then I wouldn't be surprised if Apple pulls out of France just to spite the government. I wouldn't blame them because that's what I would do if that happened to me.

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They will not pull out of France. There are many other countries where the iPhone is available from more than one carrier.

QuarterSwede said:

*Yes I agree that consumer rights come before company rights.

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Agreed