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Official reply from an O2 Sales Director

Joe23

Joe23

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Sep 14, 2007
373
230
I sent an email to the CEO of O2 yesterday, Matthew Key, and received this reply from an O2 Sales Director a few minutes ago:

Dear Sir/Madam

Thank you for your email. Matthew has asked me as O2 Sales Director responsible for iPhone to reply on his behalf. Up front, I would like to apologise for the disappointing and frustrating experience you had yesterday on our online shop.

At O2 we had said that we would keep all those who had registered their interest in Apple iPhone 3G up to date with the launch developments. We also used the registration data to keep Apple up to date on the phenomenal interest and to support our orders for the phones with them. We have been working continuously with them to get as much stock for the UK as possible. Unfortunately, they have only been able to supply a small proportion of the number of phones we asked for, because they are launching simultaneously in 22 countries. We are confident that over time we will start to get sufficient volume to meet demand, but it is likely that stock will be in very short supply for some weeks to come.

We opened the online shop yesterday, having only told those who had registered that it was available, to give them a chance to be one of the first to get their hands on the iPhone. This also meant that successful orders could be delivered to customers’ homes on the same day as the retail high street launch, 11th July. To put it in context we had over 200,000 people expressing interest and only a very small proportion of that number of devices available. Faced with this dilemma, we made it clear in the communications that to be fair to all customers the orders would be managed on a first come first served basis, as stock was limited. The response was so great that the online store completely sold out of iPhones within just a few hours.

We did also take steps to ensure our own customers were not disadvantaged by providing a stock allocation for them. We took as many upgrades orders from O2 customers as we did from the customers of all the other networks put together.

We run one of the busiest and most robust web stores in the UK. I appreciate that it is little comfort to you given your experience, but we had invested heavily to add a huge amount of additional capacity, 250 times its normal rate, and back-up systems. We tested this carefully in advance. The massive simultaneous crush, partly created by our open and honest communications approach with the registered community, exceeded even our worst case assumptions. Demand was at 13,000 orders per second. Frankly, we have to admit we just weren't prepared for this unprecedented level of demand. No website is.

The next opportunity to get an iPhone will be when the device goes on sale in the high street on 11th July. O2 and Carphone Warehouse stores will be taking new orders and upgrade orders. Apple stores will only be taking new customer contracts. Most shops will open at 8.02am but some stores, particularly in shopping centres where early access is not possible, will open as usual from 9am. The approach on Friday will also be on a first come first served basis. The amount of devices will vary depending on the store but will be on average a few dozen iPhones in each O2 or CPW store. We are expecting early queues and, like the online site, are expecting to sell out very quickly. Apple stores will have more devices. We will be receiving deliveries from Apple roughly once a week for the foreseeable future but it will be several weeks before stocks increase. We will release stock updates for the online shop as they become available.

I am sorry that you haven’t been successful in getting your hands on the new iPhone and once again I would like to apologise that the experience you had wasn’t as we wanted or you deserve. All I can do is reassure you that we will continue to work closely with Apple to get as much stock as possible for the UK. We will also continue to use the principle of first come first served as stock becomes available for both online and in our stores as we feel that is the best way to be fair and equitable to the many tens of thousands of other customers also desperate to get one.

Thank you

Stephen Shurrock
Sales Director
O2
Click to expand...
 
Oops, didn't see the other thread - sorry!
 
To be honest... their worst case scenario "assumptions" must have been way off the mark. It has been tipped for months to be one of the, if not "THE" hottest gadget of the year. Fancy sites aren't what the consumer wants, they want the iPhone.


And if they knowingly only obtained a small number of handsets in relation to the demand... why not publish this on the site, instead of allowing consumers to go on thinking they had a chance to pre-order?



Overall this has been quite a disgrace.
 
The story that O2 doesn't actually have that many to go around, has yet to make front page news, but it will soon.

O2 is basically saying - we have about 50-60 handsets a store (for the sake of argument).

Then a weekly stock update. Anyone revising the time they're going to be heading to an O2 store now? I'm certainly thinking about getting up earlier!
 
t0mat0 said:
The story that O2 doesn't actually have that many to go around, has yet to make front page news, but it will soon.

O2 is basically saying - we have about 50-60 handsets a store (for the sake of argument).

Then a weekly stock update. Anyone revising the time they're going to be heading to an O2 store now? I'm certainly thinking about getting up earlier!
Click to expand...

After a second read through I picked up on that (the first time through I was reading the email on my phone walking back to the office from an O2 store!).

My local store isn't opening until 9am (due to being in a shopping centre), but I don't think demand will be that high... maybe... hopefully not :(

I'll be there from half 8, though.
 
me too, i got that one. God i feel special knowing i was one of only 10000 people to get it
 
Joe23 said:
After a second read through I picked up on that (the first time through I was reading the email on my phone walking back to the office from an O2 store!).

My local store isn't opening until 9am (due to being in a shopping centre), but I don't think demand will be that high... maybe... hopefully not :(

I'll be there from half 8, though.
Click to expand...

Bear in mind that people who can spend the day trying, will go from store to store, and they'll be starting with the stores that open at 7:02 if there are any near. That's my plan - i'm hitting a local one prior to 7am, then if they sell out (unlikely) I camp out with breakfast at the local shopping centre, with my trainers all tied up and ready to go!
 
I will be phoning my local O2 stores on thursday to check when they are opening then i will be making a schedule with plans A, B and C!!!!

Plan A is to go to the main store in town, then plan B is the shopping centre and finally plan C is to try the small store on the high street (all this depending on opening times :D)

I would love to find somewhere a page on O2 or Apple's site that clearly states whether i can upgrade in store as if i cannot then the plan is pointless, If so then i want to print it as proof to any under-informed O2 staff!!!
 
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