The problem is that the Consumers' Code [Law] in france prohibts the sell of a product tied to a service. Meaning that iPhones have to be sold both locked with a service plan by Orange as well as unlocked to this specific carrier. 1st problem: how do you specify the price of the locked and the "unlocked" (non-Orange) version? 2nd: Apparently Apple has demanded 30% of the calling revenues acquired by iPhone users from Orange. How can they claim that if the iPhone can be used with any carrier? Obviously they can't. 3rd: a parallel WORLD market of unlocked iPhones will be set up in France where Apple will no longer be able to guarantee "specific network-locked" iPhones, and from there they will be distributed all around the world, making ruins out of Apple's expectations to receive "air-time" premiums (actually percentages) and capitalizing from every carrier that distributes iPhone around the world.
this is one of the points of failing for apples aim to gain a significant share of the mobile biz - wanting to be the lock-in king. should they have gone for regular route they could have launched all of europe at once.
but obviously, if they want 1000+ per iphone in revenues they couldn't just have sticked a 1k price sticker and expected anyone to buy it.
real kicker for finland though is that you can only sell 3g phones tied to network deals(used to be that you couldn't tie anything to a network sub). also goes for any other small country, apple unlikely to even enter those markets if they want to keep the exclusivity/revenue share model... (not that there is a lot to share in properly competed markets anyhow)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Nemesis @ Oct 6th 2007 5:53PM
The problem is that the Consumers' Code [Law] in france prohibts the sell of a product tied to a service. Meaning that iPhones have to be sold both locked with a service plan by Orange as well as unlocked to this specific carrier.
1st problem: how do you specify the price of the locked and the "unlocked" (non-Orange) version?
2nd: Apparently Apple has demanded 30% of the calling revenues acquired by iPhone users from Orange. How can they claim that if the iPhone can be used with any carrier? Obviously they can't.
3rd: a parallel WORLD market of unlocked iPhones will be set up in France where Apple will no longer be able to guarantee "specific network-locked" iPhones, and from there they will be distributed all around the world, making ruins out of Apple's expectations to receive "air-time" premiums (actually percentages) and capitalizing from every carrier that distributes iPhone around the world.
lassi @ Oct 7th 2007 9:18AM
this is one of the points of failing for apples aim to gain a significant share of the mobile biz - wanting to be the lock-in king. should they have gone for regular route they could have launched all of europe at once.
but obviously, if they want 1000+ per iphone in revenues they couldn't just have sticked a 1k price sticker and expected anyone to buy it.
real kicker for finland though is that you can only sell 3g phones tied to network deals(used to be that you couldn't tie anything to a network sub). also goes for any other small country, apple unlikely to even enter those markets if they want to keep the exclusivity/revenue share model... (not that there is a lot to share in properly competed markets anyhow)