Posted on 07/04/2007 2:21:21 PM PDT by Babu
It looks like it's a triumph for Steve Jobs, after all: despite all the problems caused by a registration logjam for the iPhone, Apple reckons it will be able to announce a million sales by Thursday. That will probably be the moment to reveal the Euro iPhone deal, say sources.
The "Euro iPhone deal" is this (from a newswireless.net store June 29, here): A new 3G (European) version of the iPhone will be launched Monday in the UK by Apple - in a join promotion with Vodafone, T-Mobile of Germany, and Carphone Warehouse. It should answer the disappointment with the US version of the iPhone which has been widely slammed for its poor performance as a phone.
Hints of the European launch emerged yesterday when Bill Condie of the London Evening Standard tipped Vodafone to be the official carrier, which will be confirmed Monday. But Voda is just part of the picture, with Apple going for a three-pronged European strategy with carriers - again, responding to disappointment in America with the exclusive deal with AT&T/Cingular.
Shipment date is still unknown, but "on course" for the year-end date predicted last October by Apple CEO Steve Jobs.
Vodafone is currently in an ideal position to take on the iPhone, because its 3G network is hugely under-utilised. Pricing on mobile data is normally prohibitive, but Vodafone has recently revised its 3G data charges down, following "rip-off" complaints from users.
It may even be possible that European data prices will match, or be an improvement on the eye-watering charges announced by AT&T in North America.
The iPhone requires a high speed Internet connection to function properly, both because of its excellent Internet browsing capacity, and also because of its requirement for high quality video, which limits the appeal of the US version.
Writer Condie quoted sources inside Credit Suisse which suggested that France Telecom was in line for a franchise. That is unlikely to be fulfilled, possibly because of Orange's insistence on "strong branding" on any handset it carries. Orange has irritated several phone makers by insisting on disabling technical and user-oriented features which didn't sit with Orange commercial policy.
The appointment of Carphone Warehouse as a virtual network carrier will be a big surprise, however.
T-Mobile CEO Rene Oberman was reported to be "ecstatic" at getting a joint contract, according to insiders. He's expected to be present at the Apple party Monday when the new device is unveiled.
The American version, using only 2G phone technology, goes on sale today. Queues have been forming outside Apple (and other) retail outlets in New York since Tuesday this week.
It would be a good call to invest in Vodaphone and Tmobile right now, including Rodgers communications in Canada that will be heavily involved in the Canada rollout.
Now that Sarko is elected and the politics of France has become less anti-american, I expect their bolshevik attacks on american companies to subside greatly. Like their threats to ban ipod sales in France because apple’s i-tunes music service provides mp3’s that only play on Ipods.
Cool. I just found out that I own about 250 shares of Vodaphone, along with other telecommunication stocks, thanks to my step daddy. If I could just get the estate lawyer to turn things loose I might have some fun!
“I just found out that I own about 250 shares of Vodaphone”
Boo-yahh!!!!
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