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Wrote a letter to Steve Jobs about 999 euro iPhone

T

TheSpecialist

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 11, 2007
475
0
The Netherlands, Europe
Thread title:cool:

Does anyone like me has sent a letter to Stevie about the ridiculous 999 euro price for the unlocked iPhone in Germany? I hope Steve does something about it!!!

Greetings.
 
I think it's probably T-Mobile's decision on pricing, rather than Apple's. T-Mobile is aiming to recoup the costs of giving up the contract which usually associated with an iPhone purchase. That's not to say that Apple can't influence the decision...
 
TheSpecialist said:
Thread title:cool:

Does anyone like me has sent a letter to Stevie about the ridiculous 999 euro price for the unlocked iPhone in Germany? I hope Steve does something about it!!!

Greetings.
Click to expand...

He'll laugh about that letter.
The price isn't €999 because Apple wants to make a lot of money from unlocked iPhones. It is €999 because Apple doesn't want you to buy them.
 
As I said in other threads, this is exactly the same as Europe "forcing" microsoft to sell a version of windows xp without the media player. Microsoft charged the same for both versions and they ended up selling a few hundred copies of this special windows xp version.

Completely useless legal exercise.
 
I really don't see what the problem here is.

OK, the real problem is that Apple should have made these things unlocked to begin with. But that has nothing to do with the T-Mobile decision.

And, frankly, I think they're committed to this whether they like it or not. Imagine that Steve Jobs takes sympathy and gives us our best-case scenario: from now on, all iPhones are sold unlocked at the same prices as before. You all saw the uproar when the prices were dropped. He'd be lynched! Apple can't win either way.
 
notjustjay said:
I really don't see what the problem here is.

OK, the real problem is that Apple should have made these things unlocked to begin with. But that has nothing to do with the T-Mobile decision.

And, frankly, I think they're committed to this whether they like it or not. Imagine that Steve Jobs takes sympathy and gives us our best-case scenario: from now on, all iPhones are sold unlocked at the same prices as before. You all saw the uproar when the prices were dropped. He'd be lynched! Apple can't win either way.
Click to expand...

quite! - the anti-apple, or "I should get everything free crowd", will never be satisfied.

apple and tmobile can do what they want, as long as they are not in cartel with other providers or defrauding.

all other restraints on trade are anti-competitive. and everyone knows that EU is protectionist and anti-competitive (Tesco can't buy jeans from US -what was that about !)

some people have totally lost perspective on this.

apple can charge $9999 for unlocked phone, so what, don't buy it and don't cry.

tmobile can offer a deal at $999 a month with phone at $99999. don't like it, don't buy it.

all because apple have produced something people like but they don't want to pay - TOO BAD

I'm sure they will be just as successfull convincing BMW to sell M5s for $100
 
colonelbutt said:
quite! - the anti-apple, or "I should get everything free crowd", will never be satisfied.

apple and tmobile can do what they want, as long as they are not in cartel with other providers or defrauding.

all other restraints on trade are anti-competitive. and everyone knows that EU is protectionist and anti-competitive (Tesco can't buy jeans from US -what was that about !)

some people have totally lost perspective on this.

apple can charge $9999 for unlocked phone, so what, don't buy it and don't cry.

tmobile can offer a deal at $999 a month with phone at $99999. don't like it, don't buy it.

all because apple have produced something people like but they don't want to pay - TOO BAD

I'm sure they will be just as successfull convincing BMW to sell M5s for $100
Click to expand...

Well said!
 
wait, wait €999 can't possibly be right.

That would only make sense if the regular ol' iPhones are subsidized.

And we all know they aren't, so clearly it must simply be a typo.
 
Sobe said:
wait, wait €999 can't possibly be right.

That would only make sense if the regular ol' iPhones are subsidized.

And we all know they aren't, so clearly it must simply be a typo.
Click to expand...

Its not subsidized. However Apple are given a percentage of the money made from the contract price.
Since they are being sold without contract, they have bumped the price. So if you buy on contract or not Apple make the same amount of money.
 
TheNightPhoenix said:
Its not subsidized. However Apple are given a percentage of the money made from the contract price.
Since they are being sold without contract, they have bumped the price. So if you buy on contract or not Apple make the same amount of money.
Click to expand...

Re-read what you wrote. To any normal analysis that is exactly subsidized.

A phone with a plan is cheaper than one without and in either case they make roughly the same amount of money.

In one case, they take less money up front for more money over the life of the contract. In the other they take all the money upfront with no future revenues guaranteed.

Maybe it's not precisely how other cell phones in the past were subsidized, but that's rather immaterial to the point at hand.

The bottom line is that the contract is worth something to Apple. It could be for pure greed, it could be to finance iPhone v2.0, it could be to pay for Jobs' next Ferrari -- doesn't really matter except that there is a difference in the price because the contract has a monetary value to Apple and that value is reflected in the price Apple asks you to pay when you purchase the iPhone.

A fact that people who unlock the phone seem to manage to completely ignore.
 
colonelbutt said:
quite! - the anti-apple, or "I should get everything free crowd", will never be satisfied.

apple and tmobile can do what they want, as long as they are not in cartel with other providers or defrauding.

all other restraints on trade are anti-competitive. and everyone knows that EU is protectionist and anti-competitive (Tesco can't buy jeans from US -what was that about !)

some people have totally lost perspective on this.

apple can charge $9999 for unlocked phone, so what, don't buy it and don't cry.

tmobile can offer a deal at $999 a month with phone at $99999. don't like it, don't buy it.

all because apple have produced something people like but they don't want to pay - TOO BAD

I'm sure they will be just as successfull convincing BMW to sell M5s for $100
Click to expand...

Very eloquent, your nick says it all :p NOT
 
Sobe said:
no I'm suggesting that the contract has a monetary value that is reflected in the price of the phone when you purchase it for $399.
Click to expand...

Its exactly that monetary drain which unlockers prefer to avoid. Apple obviously has not made a compelling case as to why they deserve to be paid for more than the hardware. No-one else has either.
 
Sobe said:
no I'm suggesting that the contract has a monetary value that is reflected in the price of the phone when you purchase it for $399.
Click to expand...


But as the phone is not subsidised - we know this as you do not sign a contract for it when you buy it (you can buy it and do what you like with it legally, and not enter into a contract with the network) - then that monetary value should not be reflected in the price of the phone.

It would make more sense if Apple/O2/AT&T did subsidise the phone (even if they charged £269 like they do now unsubbed) and made you sign a contract that stated you only got the phone at that price if you keep on the contract. This is how how all contract phones are sold in the UK (high price unlocked/pay as you go - versus cheap or free phone locked into a contract) - you must return the phone if you break the contract, or pay a penalty.

Apple tried to go a weird in between way with the iphone that just makes no sense to us in the UK - perhaps because of the Ipod touch (which is an iphone minus the GSM bits which cost little, and a touch more software tweaks and a few other bits), selling the iphone for double or triple the cost of a touch unlocked would have made people question it's value.

I think they would have avoided all criticism if they'd had it cheap on contract and expensive unlocked from the start.
 
Steve isn't looking out for your interests, he's looking out for his own. The real profitability of the iPhone is derived from kickbacks from the wireless contracts. If you want an unlocked one, then you're not exactly his favorite customer. You'll have to pay for the difference.

Not saying this is right, or defending Apple/Jobs on this one. I'd love an unlocked iPhone. But it's just business, and I can see their side.
 
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