iPhone for Meteor?
A week from today, the ill-fated iPhone will be launched in the US on AT&T.
But what about Ireland? Industry focus is now on Meteor, it seems. It is the only non-3G network with no huge emphasis on garnering revenue from music downloads via its own network (which the iPhone won't facilitate). And it is definitely the favourite if T-Mobile has secured Apple's European carrier deal.
Quite how the €600 iPhone would sell on Ireland's low-cost, pre-paid, cheap calls network could be interesting to follow.
Ill-fated? I've seen little to suggest that so far.
As for Meteor being the only non-3G network, their (or eircom's) acceptance of the last 3G licence means that they have to start rolling out their 3G network asap - I read somewhere they'll need 33% coverage by October.
The way I see it, the only company that's out of the running for the iPhone in Ireland is probably Three, because the other carries still have their national 2G networks in place. (And that's assuming that Apple don't add 3G functionality before a European launch, which still isn't dated and could be as late as 2008.)
I'd personally put my money on Vodafone getting the contract, simply because I can't see Apple being keen on going country to country with their device and Vodafone would offer the most clout, especially in terms of bill-payers.
They might even end up selling direct to market - that's easier to do in Europe than the US and the only functionality they'll really lose is "visual voicemail".
Posted by: Adam | June 23, 2007 at 03:29 PM
No way will Vodafone live with a high profile model that bypasses its 'Live' revenue stream. So either Apple accepts Vodafone's dual-branding model (and you think they will?) or there's no deal there, as I see it.
As for relying on selling it outside of network subsidies, no way. Even though Apple is in a stronger position to do this than arguably anyone else (due to its own strong brand), a €600 iPhone can't compare with a (subsidised) €200 Sony Ericsson or Nokia MP3 phone in the European market.
As for Apple going country to country, they'll have to do this to some extent anyway: whatever operator group (T-Mobile, Vodafone, Telefonica) they trade with has limited territories in Europe.
You may well be right about Apple incorporating 3G into it: imagine trying to watch YouTube streams on GRPS across the iPhone's 3.5 inch screen....
Posted by: Adrian | June 23, 2007 at 06:37 PM
No way will Vodafone live with a high profile model that bypasses its 'Live' revenue stream. So either Apple accepts Vodafone's dual-branding model (and you think they will?) or there's no deal there, as I see it.
True, Vodafone has had no problem with crippling phones in the past (taking VoIP functionality from the N95) but Apple wouldn't agree to that happening for any of the iPhone features.
But is it definite that the likes of the Live service (and music track downloads via mobile networks) won't be possible? I know, wishful thinking for Apple to actively encourage people to use other download services on their devices, but you never know (after all, iTunes isn't much of a profit maker for them - it's just a kind of loss leader).
As for relying on selling it outside of network subsidies, no way. Even though Apple is in a stronger position to do this than arguably anyone else (due to its own strong brand), a €600 iPhone can't compare with a (subsidised) €200 Sony Ericsson or Nokia MP3 phone in the European market.
But Apple told AT&T not to subsidise the iPhone, and they'll do the same here with whoever they launch with.
They want the iPhone to be a premium product, and whether it's sold in Vodaphone outlets or apple.ie, it will be the same price.
As for Apple going country to country, they'll have to do this to some extent anyway: whatever operator group (T-Mobile, Vodafone, Telefonica) they trade with has limited territories in Europe.
True, although Vodafone has a finger in the most pies, so to speak, and would allow for a huge chunk of Europe to be covered in one deal.
You may well be right about Apple incorporating 3G into it: imagine trying to watch YouTube streams on GRPS across the iPhone's 3.5 inch screen....
I've always got the impression that the lack of 3G technology in the iPhone was because it would be a waste in the US market - UMTS networks are only starting to get rolled out there. I can't imagine it would be too hard to add it for the European launch if they see it as a critical factor, and many other people do.
I suppose the important thing to remember, however, is that the iPod is generally more expensive and less feature-laden than its rivals and that hasn't stopped its huge success.
Just like the iPod, the iPhone's most attractive features are its interface* and its form factor and as a result it could easily become as much of an object of desire, which cares not for functionality.
* I'm very skeptical about the touchscreen too, but I'm keen to try it before writing it off. Other than that, in terms of the OS itself, it looks fantastic, especially compared to some of the ones on modern phones at the moment.
Posted by: Adam | June 24, 2007 at 12:38 AM
Uh... that looks messy - tried to quote you and put your comments in italics, but they didn't show up!
Posted by: Adam | June 24, 2007 at 12:56 AM
Adrian.. if this article were published on April 1st I'd get it .. but otherwise I'm amazed to read anything like it in the SBP..
Your whole article is based on the ill-informed and inconceivable idea that the iPhone will launch in Europe with out 3G capability, when every other mention of the product on this side of the Atlantic is pretty sure it wil.
Are you seriously suggesting that the most revolutionary product to hit the phone market is going to be a flop because people will have to text slightly different ?
Perhaps you thought the iPod would never catch on ? Maybe you knocked the iMac for dropping floppy drives and that firewire was a useless innovation ? This is Apple we're talking about and a phone that almost a year before it hits the shops has been of the cover of New York Times and has received the press and publicity that Sony Nokia and Bill Gates together could only dream of.
A recent survey found that 7 million people in the UK would be willing to purchase an iPhone. Queues are forming in the US as we speak !
This is a revolutionary product , the iPod's effect on the music download industry has surely thought us something and the iPhone will be no different. Whether subsidised or not, Mobile phone operators all over the world will be doing their utmost to have this high profile , premium product available to the customers. The prices will come down, the way it's sold will change, and the iPhone will be the one phone everyone will want to have.
Vodafone or O2 will surely see that carrying this product will do far more for them than the meagre revenues created by Live or iMode.. and I simply can't see any of them regarding it as a potential flop. You're surely on your own there..
Tut tut.. all you gotta do is look at the thing.. I know I'll be having one..
Posted by: Norm | June 26, 2007 at 07:53 PM
Norm,
Revolutionary my ass. How, exactly? What will people do with this that they can't do already?
Yes I'm saying it will be a flop. Because of (a) its texting difficulty, (b) its bulky size and (c) its price.
Even if it does come with 3G, it'll still be a flop (meaning it will be a niche product that won't attain mass market sales, which Apple defines as 1 per cent market penetration).
I was one of the first people in the country to buy an iPod. I've been using a Mac at home since 1987.
Clear enough?
Posted by: Adrian | June 27, 2007 at 03:26 PM
Rumours of Vodafone carriage being a "done deal" according to Credit Suisse/Engadget (although they've been wrong on apple stuff before!):
http://www.engadget.com/2007/06/27/credit-suisse-vodafone-likely-to-carry-3g-iphone-in-europe/
And the first reviews are in and they're quite positive, if not glowing. The major gripes are (unsurprisingly) typing and the lack of 3G - as I've already said, I'm expecting the latter to be resolved by the European launch, and will have to wait and try it out myself to come to a conclusion on the former:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118289311361649057.html?mod=yahoo_hs&ru=yahoo
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/27/technology/circuits/27pogue.html?_r=1&ref=technology&oref=slogin
Posted by: Adam | June 27, 2007 at 11:44 PM
As one of the first people in Ireland to have an iPod you'll remember the under-whelming first couple of years the product had until other factors in the industry finally caught up with it and made it the huge success it is now. That too was bulky, fiddly, had a crap battery, duff screen, not many songs to download and was incredibly pricey.
There were scandals about batteries, iTunes and DRM. It lauched everywhere except here and when it did we complained about the prices of songs.. the UK moaned and moaned all the way to the top in government, and eventually they just realised it was simply the best way to get music and got on with it. Now how much of a flop was the iPod ?
This won't be no 1. this Christmas .. but then again that's not Apple.
Will you be buying one ??? ;-)
Posted by: norm | June 29, 2007 at 12:05 AM
The difference with the iPod was that it did something nothing else did -- packed a massive amount of music on a small digital device.
Can I ask one simple question: what exactly is the iPhone's must-have feature?
Posted by: Adrian | June 29, 2007 at 01:36 PM