How much does Apple really want to sell the iPhone in Europe?
Something has been bugging me for some time: I don’t think Apple really wants to sell a lot of iPhones in Europe.
I know that Apple stands to make a lot of revenue from locked iPhones, particularly in America where the iPhone has been a huge hit, but despite that, I think they’re much more smitten with their new iPods.
Take a look at the iPod Touch – it’s an iPhone without the phone and the camera. It also comes without the minimum £35 monthly contract on a UK network with only 30% EDGE coverage and a significantly poorer deal than available with other mobile phones or networks.
There may have been a fanfare surrounding the UK launch, but it seemed to fade away at the German announcement, and the less said about the French iPhone fiasco the better.
iPod Touch users can get the same benefits of The Cloud access which will be enjoyed by iPhone users, for £3.99 per month. That’s a lot cheaper than a mobile contract, if you want wider access to Wi-Fi when out and about.
Take a look at the front pages of Apple UK and Apple Germany. Where’s the iPhone? It’s hidden beneath those huge iPod images.
Take a look at the Apple UK and Germany online stores. Where’s the iPhone? Hidden “below the fold”.
Even the US Apple Store now makes much more of its iPods than the iPhone.
O2 are shouting about the iPhone, as are T-Mobile Germany, but they’ve invested the most in infrastructure, and will lose the most if the iPhone flops, or gets unlocked.
Look at how Apple are pushing their iTunes-Store-over-Wi-Fi feature, available to both iPhone and Touch users. That effectively shuts the mobile operators completely out of the loop.
Apple’s continual push to become the centre of users’ digital lifestyle depends much more on the likes of Apple TV (however poorly it’s been received so far), expansion of iTunes services, and the integration of OS X into mobile, desktop, and living room products.
Not AT&T, O2, T-Mobile, or anyone else.
Steve Jobs has always had a low opinion of telecoms operators.
I know there are still five weeks to go until the iPhone launches in Europe, but I’d have expected much more publicity by now.
I’m not saying Apple want the iPhone to fail, but I just don’t believe it’s their top priority any more. The whole European deal feels lacklustre. Or is it just me?
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