Research finds iPhone hurting operators, Boy George unavailable for comment
We've long since known that Apple (as opposed to AT&T) was getting the better end of the pair's exclusive partnership here in America, but new research from Strand Consult has found that the situation is fairly similar all around the globe. According to the report, nary a one of the telecom operators it studied had seen a boost in market share, revenue or earnings as a result of introducing the iPhone, and some carriers even issued profit warnings due to the heavily subsidized handset. The study goes on to shed pity on firms like SingTel and TeliaSonera, both of which are purportedly seeing margins and ARPU (average revenues per subscriber) sink due to Apple's darling joining the fray. But really, we can't help but express our doubts about the all encompassing, almost sensationalized nature of this; we've watched AT&T's profits soar ever since it snagged the iPhone, and considering that every iPhone buyer also coughs up a significant monthly fee for a data plan, we can't imagine revenues tanking that severely. Or, you know, maybe we're all just getting a really good deal on our bloated iPhone plans.
























Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Hey Ya @ Aug 17th 2009 3:23PM
Maybe carriers in other countries have a harder time strong-arming their customers into wildly overpriced data plans.
RTMS @ Aug 17th 2009 4:20PM
Exactly, telecoms charge for all the little apps they want to foster on you , while the iPhone bybasses them and Apple makes all the money. Just wait and see, soon enough the telecoms are going to demand a piece of the app pie
big_psirex @ Aug 17th 2009 9:48PM
Look at the size of that tooth on that tiger!!!!!
Vic De Zen @ Aug 18th 2009 11:20AM
The bloated costs of Canadian data plans for the iPhone gives me reason to doubt this study. Was it sponsored by the carriers or what?