Classic Cappuccino
Apple's arrogance seems set to stuff up the launch of the
iPhone in China. If Jobs' Mob managed to convince the Chinese that it is
fruit themed gizmos were worth buying then the outfit would have been made for
life.
However Apple's understanding about how people outside
America work has created for itself an own goal which means that the gizmo is
doomed. Apple's local partner, China Unicom, hopes the sleek
smartphone will give it an edge against giant rival China Mobile, the world's
biggest phone company by subscribers. However Unicom's iPhones lack WiFi because it was
temporarily banned by Beijing, which was promoting a rival Chinese system and
Apple did not want to adapt. The lack of WiFi means Unicom iPhone customers
will have to pay to connect to the phone network for every function and could
lead to expensive phone bills.
Not only that are they selling a dumbed down phone, but
Apple faces tough competition from itself. The Chinese have been importing unlocked, wifi added
phones for ages and there is absolutely no reason for the great unwashed to pay
huge amounts of cash for a phone that can do less. Analysts say that punters will be cross at Apple for
treating them like second class customers while still managing to charge them
more than they can afford.
Unicom claims that the outfit it's iPhone package does
not just include the handset but post-sales support and a whole package of
services, but it is unlikely that line of reasoning will work with the cash
strapped Chinese. Already the iPhone launch in China has been delayed
because Apple was insisting that the carriers pay it huge amounts of money for
the privilege of selling the gizmo.