[macfantn]

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/0...-up-on-volume/

interesting

[Railroader]

Free iPhone - a simple guide to get a free iPhone

[Sealobo]

Apple is a company selling hardwares.

(iTunes should spin off from AAPL for value maximization.)

[The Godfather]

It is possible. Possibly in the form of a rebate, in exchange of starting a 2-year contract with AT&T.

And that very same day, old iPhone owners will be whining for a $200 Apple credit.

[Koralatov]

I can't see that happening, to be honest. The only way I think Apple would ever do it is if they 'froze' the iPhone in its current state, and eventually it would cost practically nothing to manufacture, and they'd maybe do it then. But even in that exceptionally unlikely circumstance, I don't see it happening. Apple will keep upgrading the iPhone every six to twelve months, which will in turn mean that we're going to keep paying for it.

Apple is having it's cake and eating it just now: it gets a cut of every contract, every month, and it gets a whack of cash for the phone itself. Eventually, the contractual percentage will dry up, and they'll be left with only making money on the phone. For that reason, I think we'll never get it free. However, I don't actually mind paying for it: it's going to be £269 over here, which is the same as a 16GB iPod touch. Granted, it's only got half the storage, but it has the phone, the EDGE internet, Mail.app and it's all-in-one. I think that those are more than worth sacrificing a few gigs of storage for. Besides, I'm never likely to ever want to carry 16GB of entertainment with me, ever.

I would like a TV out on the iPhone though...

[analogika]

Sure Apple *could* sell the phone at a loss and still make more money than off the top-end iPod.

But why the hell *should* they?

[Angus_D]

Blackfriars' Marketing: The gutsy marketing and strategy behind Apple's iPhone price cut

Consumers value what they pay for. They don't value things they perceive as free. And that's the marketing blunder the US mobile phone market has bought into over the last 10 to 15 years. By bundling "free" and generic phones with cell phone service, mobile carriers have devalued both the brand values of the handset makers and their own services. The handset makers are hurt because the low values that carriers will pay for free phones eliminates the incentive for those manufacturers to do anything but cut costs. The carriers are hurt because they have to pay subsidy fees to the handset makers of anywhere between $150 and $250 over a two-year contract to actually buy those free handsets. You've heard of a win-win deal? This is a lose-lose deal.

[turtle777]

^^^

Truth !

-t