As the dust settles on the iPhone 3G / WWDC blowout, we've sifted through the debris and discovered a few eyebrow-raising tidbits you might be interested to know. The first of which is news that the next firmware update (2.0) could be headed to devices as early as June 27th, at least according to Apple's Australian iPod touch features page, which touts the arrival of the app store later this month. Meanwhile, Apple's cash cow won't get those OTA iTunes music downloads that were being heavily speculated on in May. Word on the street is that record labels are -- wait for it -- still holding out for those upped premiums, or that AT&T wants a cut of the action, which Apple is reluctant to hand over. Of course, AT&T wanting their share of that revenue makes good sense when you realize that the telco is taking a major hit on the sale of these devices -- a hit which will stall profits until 2010. Perhaps that explains the new rules about activation; according to a report from Reuters, the company will penalize customers who buy a phone but don't activate within 30 days, which falls in line with their aggressive new push to lock users into a contract... which looks exactly like the old cellphone business model. On a lighter note, iLounge has some real-world spy shots of the device's shell, which they claim smudges like it's going out of style, though it may be joined by a Product (RED) variation later this year. Enjoy!

Update: Apparently Apple reps have confirmed that there won't be any early firmware updates for the masses, and that they're still on schedule for July 11th. The Australian site has since updated its info -- so put the champagne back on ice.

[Thanks, Dan and Danny]

Read - Australian iPod touch features page
Read - No Over-The-Air 3G Music Downloads For New iPhone; Labels Holding Out For Higher Price Per Track?
Read - iPhone to cut into AT&T earnings until 2010
Read - Real World Photos: Inside + Outside iPhone 3G's New Shell

Remember Nokia's Comes with Music (CWM) service? The service which includes a full year of free DRM'd music downloads with the purchase of a CWM cellphone. Up to this point, Nokia has refused to comment on the financial details of the service. Important since "free" is expected to be anything but free with those music costs tucked neatly into the price of the handset, the carrier's data plan, or both. In an interview published by Bloomberg, Tero Ojanpera, Nokia Executive VP, discussed CWM and says that, "In those cases where we cooperate with operators, there will be an arrangement so they can get a piece." Something previously hinted at by Nokia's CEO back in December. Still no word on who, beyond Universal, will offer their music on the new service or how much the new bundled handsets will cost. Ojanpera did repeat that CWM won't be available on existing Nokia devices. For its part, Universal says that DRM is a definite component of the service -- a possible deal-breaker if that DRM limits your CWM downloads to a single handset and PC for eternity.

The argument of the iPhone being an industry "game changer" repeatedly suffers the same pitfall: people end up arguing about the device, not the deal. Fact is, the oh-so-secretive, revenue-sharing model which Apple struck with AT&T, O2, T-Mobile, and Orange as part of their non-subsidized, carrier exclusive has changed the rules of carrier / device maker dance. Now Nokia, as you'd expect with their 40% market share, is asking for their slice of the pie. "As far as mobile phones are concerned we are sticking with our old business model," said Nokia CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, "that is, we get paid for our devices. But for providing new services we are seriously considering a shared turnover model." Hear that carriers, Nokia just put you on notice. With this and carriers now fighting to be seen as more open than their peers, well, we have a feeling that in a few years we'll barely recognize the US cartel of today.

[Via MocoNews.net]

Barely a fortnight after Apple began talking with China Mobile about getting the iPhone into the ginormous Chinese market, it seems that negotiations are off -- or still on, or something. Yesterday, Nanfang Daily reported that China Mobile's CEO felt that the "iPhone model was not suitable for China," but unnamed reporters suggested that the real reason behind the call-off was the inability for both entities to agree on -- surprise, surprise -- a revenue sharing model. Today, however, a report over at Bloomberg notes that Apple has in fact not ended discussions with China Mobile, and moreover, it was said to have "denied newspaper reports" claiming otherwise. 'Course, we've got two sides of the story here, and while Apple may feel that there's still room to negotiate, China Mobile may see things quite differently. Time will tell, we guess.

[Via Macworld]
Read - Nanfang Daily report
Read - Bloomberg report