iPhone to be subsidised by AT&T?
American Technology analyst Shaw Wu has heard from 'reliable sources' that Apple is considering a subsidy of between $50 and $150 on the iPhone.
“We are hearing rebates of $50-150 that will be offered by AT&T to lower the price points for iPhone (currently $499 for 4 GB and $599 for 8 GB) and to entice customers to sign longer term voice and data contracts,” Wu wrote. “From AT&T’s perspective, a rebate is a great marketing tool and small sacrifice to make to entice a customer to sign up for 2-year voice and data cell phone plans that cost about $75-100 per month (before taxes and fees), meaning $1800-2400 in ‘guaranteed’ bi-annual revenue.”
Apple may also get a cut of the monthly subscription fee charged by AT&T.
Subsidies in the mobile phone world are nothing unusual, but I don't think we were expecting any such deal on the iPhone.
Of course, this could be just another rumour. It will depend, in part, on how much money Apple want to make up front on the sale of the handset, and how much ongoing income it can make from the mandatory subscription.
If it does happen, it will also be interesting to see whether a similar scheme will be adopted in international markets.
Certainly a price drop would make the iPhone even more appealing, though a 2 year lock-in to a provider might still be too much to swallow, even for the die-hard Apple faithful.
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