Can Apple Find a European iPhone Partner? 323
pete314 writes "A Vnunet.com article claims that European mobile operators are unwilling to concede to Apple iPhone partnership demands. Several operators went as far as to say they 'will never offer the iPhone.' In the US, Verizon reportedly passed on the device, and AT&T is rumored to have engaged in a revenue-sharing deal that includes monthly payments to Cupertino." In Europe, unlike in the US, Apple has the option of selling the iPhone through its own dealer network without a simlock.
Answer: yes (Score:5, Interesting)
And before anyone says that we "don't know" whether the iPhone has a user-accessible SIM tray, yes, we do [iphonealley.com].
And yes, iPhone will work on any GSM carrier; that's the whole purpose of standards like GSM, and iPhone is a GSM phone. Network-specific functionality (such as visual voicemail) will not work, but the phone and basic voicemail functionality, data functionality, etc., will absolutely work.
When Apple is ready to launch iPhone in Europe - it has previously said Q4 2007 - I have no doubt they'll be launching it, whether it's with one partner or multiple, or Apple makes some compromises to make a deal happen.
I also take issue with the article's claim, regurgitated in the summary, that selling iPhone without a simlock is "not an option" in the US. Several phone manufacturers
And before anyone says that the iPhone is subsidized, therefore it must be a million dollars without a contract, you're wrong. Even though a two year contract with AT&T is required for iPhone in the US, the iPhone is not subsidized - the price is what it is [engadgetmobile.com].
And mobile operators calling Apple arrogant? How amusing. Also, I have another idea: how about people stop predicting the doom of the iPhone before it's even out yet?
Oops, forgot to finish a sentence (Score:4, Interesting)
should go on to read:
Several phone manufacturers offer unlocked GSM phones in the US that will work with any GSM carrier. There's no reason Apple couldn't do this anywhere, including Europe, and the US (after its rumored 5-year exclusive deal with AT&T is over).
Re:haha (Score:5, Interesting)
Operators are arrogant too (Score:5, Interesting)
Does it need to find a partner? (Score:3, Interesting)
And I know I'll get shot down for this, but I'm still not getting the whole iPhone vibe thing at all. It's a phone with a touchscreen. It doesn't have 3G, it has a pretty average camera and overall, it's a pretty bog-standard smartphone. Symbian and Windows Mobile devices have been out for ages, are well established with thousands of software titles, work well with corporate systems and are generally more feature-complete. In that sense, a lot of European carriers are probably wondering what the hell all the fuss is about.
Granted the iPhone has the whole iPod/iTunes thing going for it which I kinda like, but I'd wait until that touchscreen finds its way into a standalone iPod. While I'd like the iPhone to succeed, feature for feature, version 1 has already been surpassed here by the likes of the Nokia N95 and the Sony Ericsson W960i.
Re:Answer: yes (Score:4, Interesting)
1. I didn't say that.
2. Your statement ignores the fact that massive numbers of people are in fact outside of 3G coverage.
3. Large numbers of people in major metro areas will still purchase iPhone, and WiFi will also mitigate the need for 3G for a lot of people. Those who really need 3G in a handheld device don't have to get an iPhone.
4. Obviously, future generations of iPhone will have added functionality. Apple has already said 3G is coming in the future.
Now will you explain why you don't want MMS or GPS either?
1. I never use MMS, and all the people saying that MMS is mandatory and "everyone uses it" are high, because I have never used it, and no one I know uses it. And this is on a major university campus. So that doesn't impact me at all. Also, I'd use email or iPhoto for all photo management from an iPhone.
2. I wish it did have GPS. It doesn't. I guess I get to weigh the pros vs. cons when making a purchasing decision? My current phone (Palm Treo 700p) doesn't have GPS either, nor do many PDA phones. Should we get upset about all of those, too? Why don't those have GPS?
The way I see it, the iPhone is basically a modern iPod duct taped to a state of the art cell phone from 2004.
Ignoring the ignorance of your comment, I'd just say, "Good thing buying one isn't mandatory, then." No one's forcing you to buy one.
Enough already (Score:4, Interesting)
I don't think it will be sold SIM-free (Score:4, Interesting)
Wouldn't this make AT&T's "exclusive" distribution agreement written on toilet paper? Everyone who didn't want get a long contract or use AT&T would just get the iPhone imported from Europe.
A more interesting question would be what Apple is going to do in those countries where it is illegal to lock a phone to a network or require a contract for it.
If there's going to be any "revolution" in the cell phone industry caused by the iPhone, it's how business is done U.S. cellular industry when the rest of the world is entirely different. I can't believe we still have to pay for incoming calls in the U.S.
iMslow (Score:5, Interesting)
Maybe next version could manage do something sane.
I mean for networks in Europe the main selling point right now is data transfer. It is like revolution - real mobile Internet. Well iPhone does not catch that. People everywhere here use phones (via their laptops) to access Internet. You have like plenty of billboards, press adverts, TV commercials focusing on GSM data transfer abilities.
Well lets see what iPhone can do... uhm... it can do phone calls and text messaging - hmm. Like any other phone really. It is not a selling point. Right now in Poland (at belive me - it is not the most advanced country in Europe) the selling point is 4Mbps data transfer.
So concluding - there is not a market (beside of really small fashion accessory one) for iPhone unless it can work as all other phones on the market (do HDSPA and modern data transfer).
Think about it the other way (Score:3, Interesting)
Prediction (Score:3, Interesting)
in Europe, it would be a huge flop. This phone can
be a hit in Europe only if Apple reduces the price
by 25% atleast & sells it unlocked. The US is the
only place where such an expensive locked phone
can possibly sell huge numbers. But this time I
think even in the US, iPhone is not going to be
a huge hit - at best it would be a moderate success
at current price levels.
Re:haha: FAKER ALERT! (Score:3, Interesting)
Comment removed (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Answer: yes (Score:3, Interesting)
My fear is that the plan price will be comparable to any other data device, but without the benefit of a portion of that monthly bill being sent back to the manufacturer to pay the artificially low price of the handsets.
Not another iPhone story (Score:3, Interesting)
1. If you go to Tokoyo, you will find most people walking round with a 3G/4G phone in one hand and an ipod in the other. The iPod has massive market penetration in Japan; the iPhone will when lanuched in Japan will have a large potential market. However, the previous generation of mobile phones (i.e. those before 3G) are totally incompatible with GSM. This is the main reason while the Asian market will have to wait until the battery technology improves.
2. 3G phones are still massive in size and have poor battery consumption when compared with GSM, hence the 3G version of the Mototrola V3 RAZR is almost twice the thickness of the GSM version. Europeans have a tendancy to go for smaller, more stylish phones, hence market penetration of 3G phones is fairly low. There are older members of the European population that like bigger phones, but they also don't like lots of technical functions; they are not in the market for an iPhone.
3. Most of the rest of the World have GSM, but 3G support is not consistent.
4. There are many phone users in European countries that now use pay as you go phone packages. This is because of the stupid attitude of mobile phone operators with regard to roaming charges for different countries; something the EU has recently tried to resolve. As the people whom are likely to buy an iPhone in Europe are likely to be those that travel a lot, having an unlocked phone will probably be a competitive advantage.
5. If I select an ISP, for my broadband connection, why should I be restricted to which model of computer I should use? Surely it is much better to buy a phone and then buy a contract for data/phone calls separately?
Re:another data point (Score:2, Interesting)
My provider (Turkcell) uses MMS technology for voice messages. When you enable it, the voice messages you receive are "pushed" to your phone instead of dialing anything or mess with buttons. They also use it with service partners to send premier league goals almost realtime via 3G video files.
I guess the reason why Apple doesn't include MMS and it is really shame for my platform of choice.
Re:haha (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Apple just has to wait a couple weeks (Score:3, Interesting)
There's more than T-Mobile USA to life (Score:3, Interesting)
In Germany, with T-Mobile, the plans [t-mobile.de] don't charge for incoming calls and are quite competitive.
You did know that different Europeam countries have different tarifs, didn't you? and you did know that no one here charegs you for incoming calls?
Or was this just another yay USA pissing match?
(T-Mobile is a German company, btw)
Re:MMS (Score:3, Interesting)
They sure are, but do you actually know anyone who uses that stuff? Watching TV on your cell phone is fun for 10 seconds, until you realize that you'll never, ever use that, ever again. Browsing the web is somewhat more useful, but you're going to use this so rarely, given the crappyness of pretty much all phone browsers and the mere cost of the experience, that the slower transfer rates don't really matter.