Perhaps Europe will get all upcoming models of iPhone first, just so they can remain secret for longer. They can't secretly launch them in the US, they have to disclose the details six months in advance to the FCC.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple's Negotiations and the iPhone in Europe
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Perhaps Europe will get all upcoming models of iPhone first, just so they can remain secret for longer. They can't secretly launch them in the US, they have to disclose the details six months in advance to the FCC.
I think the tech savvy will do this if they want one.
Everyone else... well they might not buy them. Over £35 per month is stupid - who pays that? Most people are buying up these £15 and £17.50 deals from the likes of Three. Nobody wants to pay £35 per month any more.
OpenZone iPhone
well my boring opinion is that it will use the BT/o2 OpenZone WiFi network thingy.
yawn, stetch... i'll prob buy one, and i'll prob be annoyed i didn't wait longer for that 3.5G, 16GB and price cuts
well my boring opinion is that it will use the BT/o2 OpenZone WiFi network thingy.
yawn, stetch... i'll prob buy one, and i'll prob be annoyed i didn't wait longer for that 3.5G, 16GB and price cuts
IMO, the mobile phone market in the UK is vastly different to the states - people simply don't expect to have to pay for their (locked) phones if they're on contract, and especially if there's a 2 year lock in. I use an i600 on Orange which is a £300 phone if you buy it "SIM Free" (i.e. unlocked) - I got it for the princely sum of £0 with a 12 month contract. If they want people to pay for the phone, then most would expect it to be SIM Free and to be able to connect it to whatever tariff / carrier they want. I love Apple products and when I saw the original keynote for the iPhone I had my credit card ready. However, since then I've come to realise that it's not such a great deal and not such a great phone (far too many missing features) and probably not for me. The fact that it looks as though they'll be O2 exclusive actually makes it easier for me to ignore it: O2 are hopeless and I wouldn't move to them under any circumstances...
I take it almost everyone you know is a traveling businessman?
Nobody pays more than £30, and that's with a free phone. Most people pay £20 with the handset chucked in for free. The market here is waaaaaay more competative than in the US, Apple loyalty isn't going to sell more than a couple of thousand if it's freaking £350 with £40pm.
1 month usage (WLAN Max)*
£12 per month (12 month minimum subscription period)
http://www.o2.co.uk/business/sme/mobiliseyouroffice/wlan
plus talkplan obv...
£12 per month (12 month minimum subscription period)
http://www.o2.co.uk/business/sme/mobiliseyouroffice/wlan
plus talkplan obv...
I've paid for my phones even with a contract over the last few years - because I've wanted the latest and greatest model of smartphone. It tends to be the simpler handsets, or the ones that have been around for a while that are free (unless you get a very expensive contract (eg. £50 per month upwards)
You could argue that most people that Apple are aiming at will be people that usually buy ordinary handsets and not smartphones, and so you could be right in saying that most people do expect to get the handset free with a contract.
However, Apple's argument is that people are currently paying for their iPod separately - so by getting an iPhone you're paying for an iPod, plus a bit extra for a phone that is better than anything you could get free.
No. I'm a student. Standard £30 plans are the norm for most of my friends. And given how much they use the phone, £50-80 bills are common.
i think that is precisely what a lot of people need to understand about the cost of the iPhone
you are paying for an iPod (touch) + a phone on top..
Haha - you seem to speak with a sound of authority - but what you're saying is nonsense!
Just look at the reported revenue figures for the networks and you'll see the ARPU (average revenue per user) which is quoted exc VAT is over £300 a year
Whats more - thats an average across the whole base - people who buy the iPhone are more likely to spend more, talk more, text more etc
From what I'm hearing the UK sounds pretty similar to the US actually. Here in the US people are used to getting a handset for free or very low cost when they sign up for a contract as well. But yet look at how well the iPhone did here- people were willing to pay for it. I don't think it was just smartphone users who were used to paying extra for a higher end handset either. Like myself, for example. I was never a smartphone user, but I sure wanted an iPhone.
Here's a good question;
Will the iActivator program work with 02? I only ask because if the code is AT&T specific then the UK market will have to wait for the devs to modify the code.. something that will seem VERRRRRY long if you've bought an iPhone and don't want to use it without being unlocked.
I'm a bit bummed as I was 02 last year and swapped to Orange on a business plan.. so I have to fricken cancel and go back, oh well
Here's hoping they release it on the 18th.
Will the iActivator program work with 02? I only ask because if the code is AT&T specific then the UK market will have to wait for the devs to modify the code.. something that will seem VERRRRRY long if you've bought an iPhone and don't want to use it without being unlocked.
I'm a bit bummed as I was 02 last year and swapped to Orange on a business plan.. so I have to fricken cancel and go back, oh well
Here's hoping they release it on the 18th.
It is a similar market in that respect. General consumer phones are often free on a contract in the States too. More often than not it's the smartphones that you pay a fee for.
Not the sharpest knife in the draw are you mate?
(300 x 1.175) / 12 = £29.30
That's still less than 30, and as you said, that's across the whole base. Most of the public is going to be right down in the £20s, it's the small number of people who rely on their phones as a business who might spend £100+ a month, so unless Apple is content with that small number of actual handset sales, they're going to need to price lower than that.
AND that's often with free handsets.
Next time you accuse me of nonsense, check to see if you haven't already disproven your point in your own freaking post.
Apple have to realise that the reason they "probably" got a great deal is that O2 are desperate. I'm sure I don't have to lecture Steve on this, but if a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is.
O2 will have to come up with a *really* compelling reason for Phil A and myself to move to it. Taking the piss with price isn't the right answer.
And, just to stress the point, if Apple do announce tomorrow that it's O2 with an expensive contract, I will be rather narked and Apple's reputation will be damaged.
Just looked at Vodafone, to get similar it is £50 on a 12 month (£40 on a 18) with no long weekends. Add the stop the clock for £5 then that's £20 more than I'm paying now! Do you pay for Stop the clock? that takes yours to £20 a month (you may be existing customer and the gave you that for free). Mine includes the roaming charge for reduced internatoinal calls also and as we go on holiday at least three times a year this is great. My plan is fine for me and yours for you, I can't be watching the clock when talking, I have a gabby wife!
I bet more people pay nearer £30 than £15!
Would not use 3 until they prove themselves a bit more.
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU like Mac OS X; en) AppleWebKit/420+ (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.0 Mobile/1C28 Safari/419.3)
wow! Apple sure knows how to get what they want!
wow! Apple sure knows how to get what they want!
People should remember that Apple doesn't want everyone to buy this phone straight away, they want their product to feel exclusive and special upon release to create more of a buzz about it and increase long term demand (as well as making a load more money!!). This was proved when Apple cut $200 off the price 2 months after the US launch, as they had effectively overpriced it.
I am sure they will do a similar thing in the UK, there are plenty of people in London esspecially who can afford to pay over the odds for it and I am sure they will do. Once the initial excitement dies down they upgrade the product, drop the price and sales go through the roof. I reckon we will see iPhones in stores tomorrow at 11, but they won't be cheap!!
I am sure they will do a similar thing in the UK, there are plenty of people in London esspecially who can afford to pay over the odds for it and I am sure they will do. Once the initial excitement dies down they upgrade the product, drop the price and sales go through the roof. I reckon we will see iPhones in stores tomorrow at 11, but they won't be cheap!!
I assume one would be able to buy it without a contract but a contract is needed to USE it. Just like in the US.
Concerning the unlock, this will be tricky. It is highly probable that iPhone will have the new firmware installed, rendering the unlock patch useless.
Sorry mate, but you are wrong on this one. The £300 includes all of their prepay accountss, which have a far lower APRU than contracts. Here are the figures from O2's own financial statements.
2. Average revenue per user (ARPU)(1) - £
O2 UK (2)
Quarterly monthly average
Pre-pay 11 12 12 12 12
Post-pay 43 44 43 42 43
Blended 22 23 23 22 23
So the average revenue per user per month on contract is £43. Thats £512 per annum. For PAYG its £144.
