The much-hyped Jebus phone from Apple has reportedly missed its UK sales targets by as many as 10,000 units with the overal cost of owning the handset to blame.
Following a report in the Financial Times, quoting “people familiar with the situation,” O2 targeted to sell 200,000 units in the first eight weeks, a number regarded by analysts as a conservative estimate.
O2 still managed to fall short of the conservative figure, only selling 190,000 units.
An O2 spokesperson said “Those figures did not come from us. We continue however to be delighted with the device, which is fastest-selling device we have ever had.”
It would seem the high cost and long contract is putting off customers. With the handset itself retailing at £269 plus an 18 month contract starting at £35 per month, the minimum investment to legitimately own the iPhone is £899. In a market where consumers are used to free, or heavily subsidised handsets it would appear that this is not acceptable.
Rumours also abound regarding a possible version 2 of the iPhone that will have more features and a bigger memory.
In the US, 10 weeks after its launch, Apple cut the iPhone’s headline price from $599 to $399, which angered customers who had bought the handset.
Industry insiders say a similar price cut is needed in the UK to continue the momentum.
O2 still managed to fall short of the conservative figure, only selling 190,000 units.
An O2 spokesperson said “Those figures did not come from us. We continue however to be delighted with the device, which is fastest-selling device we have ever had.”
It would seem the high cost and long contract is putting off customers. With the handset itself retailing at £269 plus an 18 month contract starting at £35 per month, the minimum investment to legitimately own the iPhone is £899. In a market where consumers are used to free, or heavily subsidised handsets it would appear that this is not acceptable.
Rumours also abound regarding a possible version 2 of the iPhone that will have more features and a bigger memory.
In the US, 10 weeks after its launch, Apple cut the iPhone’s headline price from $599 to $399, which angered customers who had bought the handset.
Industry insiders say a similar price cut is needed in the UK to continue the momentum.