UK: EE have 6 month exclusivity on LTE Apple Watch.

[jimthing]

Was speaking to an EE service rep on the phone about an unconnected issue, and thought I'd ask about the new LTE service they offer on the new Apple Watch 3.

The guy said they have a "6 month exclusivity deal with Apple on offering LTE services" (i.e. service with phone plan, he means).

Is this true? I know EE are the only UK carrier listed by Apple, but is this really going to be exclusive to them for 6 months plus...?

 

[larmende]

Based on what other users have written here it is less an exclusivity deal rather that EE being the only provider with the technical capabilities. And the times guessed for O2/Three to catch up are longer than 6 month. I think it's discussed in the EE topic (who is switching ... or similar)

 

[Brookzy]

From what I gather there is no exclusivity agreement. And if there was this six month exclusivity, it just wouldn’t make sense that they are offering a six month free trial, because that would mean competitors start offering services at the exact time EE start charging, which is just a recipe for a mass exodus to a new provider.

However, services will only be available from EE for a lot longer than six months. The infrastructure just isn’t there in the other networks to use eSIMs or even to share numbers across devices.

Marc Allera, EE CEO, claims to have been working for three years on this technology.

O2 and Three have no plans to implement this technology yet. And Vodafone doesn’t even support VoLTE yet, which is a prerequisite.

It’ll be a long time.

 

[The Game 161]

Yeah think it’s more of EE only UK carrier who can handle the speed that is required for it to work. Nobody else can handle 4G speeds in as many places.

It’s why it needs 4G to work.

 

[jimthing]

Yeah, sounded a bit BS-like to me. I think he must have meant the 6 months free thing.
https://shop.ee.co.uk/apple-watch-series-3

Under the "Buying from other retailers" tab...

Have I got it right that if one buys this outright, you get 6 months free service "unlimited data" (then "10GB" after this for £5) but these are just data the watch uses and not any the phone uses?

If so, given both devices share the same phone number, how does EE know which device used the data?

 

[Brookzy]

Yeah, sounded a bit BS-like to me. I think he must have meant the 6 months free thing.
https://shop.ee.co.uk/apple-watch-series-3

Under the "Buying from other retailers" tab...

Have I got it right that if one buys this outright, you get 6 months free service "unlimited data" (then "10GB" after this for £5) but these are just data the watch uses and not any the phone uses?

If so, given both devices share the same phone number, how does EE know which device used the data?

Yes. Calls and texts are shared from your main allowance (which is usually unlimited anyway) but the data allocation is specifically for use on the Watch (which, with no web browser, and limited third party support, uses hardly any data anyway. I imagine Apple Music will be the biggest user when it is finally available).

Each device has its own identity on the EE network. In fact they even each have their own phone numbers. The numbers are just linked and work as one on EE’s backend.

So the data usage is tracked just like it is on any other device on EE’s network.

 

[jimthing]

Good to know, thanks. Still not buying one though, for a number of reasons...

- I don't need one (the primary reason!), so it'd be a 'nice' to have at best.
- I'm at a keyboard most of the day, and all watches get in the way for me (e.g. scratching the MBP, or dig into my wrist).
- The interface is too 'fiddly' for my liking.
- It's yet another tech thing that'll need 'managing'.*
- Another expense.**
- Other reasons I cannot think of right now!

* Tech things constantly go wrong; how many devices do I have to clear the same notifications off already because they don't sync properly!; et al.

** 42mm it'd be for me at £400 minimum (prefer the money TBH); break device in any way = pay money; more data costs (though limited); need a new band, more money; et al.

Haha!