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Tuesday, April 17, 2007, 01:00 pm
Vodafone seen as frontrunner for European iPhone contract
Apple has yet to say with which international carriers it plans to partner on iPhone distribution, but one Wall Street analyst is citing sources in saying that heavyweight Vodafone is all but a shoe-in for Europe."Our sources indicate that Vodafone is most likely iPhone's carrier partner for Europe," analyst Shaw Wu, an analyst at American Technology Research, told clients as part of a broad research note on iPhone. "We believe Vodafone's 200 million subscriber base (compared to 61 million for AT&T, its USA partner), broad country coverage, and investment in advanced technologies make it a strong fit for Apple."
Wu, who raised his price target on shares of Apple by $27 to $145 on Tuesday, went on to say that Vodafone's presence and coverage in 59 countries gives it the global reach that Apple and its customers are looking for.
Apple has said that it hopes to launch iPhone in Europe by the fourth calendar quarter of this year. In February the Cupertino-based company reportedly sent representatives to scout out a Unipart Trade Logistics-operated mobile phone repair centre in Europe to determine whether it would be suitable to handle iPhone repairs for the region.
Meanwhile, reports obtained by both AppleInsider and other Wall Street analysts have suggested that Apple could introduce a version of the iPhone based on 3G wireless technology in Europe during the first half of 2008.
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Previous Comments View All
Although Vodafone are large in stature they generally don't have the same kind of business ethic that Apple usually adhere to. Orange would be a far better partner with Apple and in my opionion, would be able to offer far more to both Apple and the end user. I've been a customer to both Vodafone and Orange and my customer experience with Orange has been far superior. I also feel that Orange have a much, am I going to say it.. yep.. 'cooler' image than Vodafone.
Dear Apple
Please ensure you look closely at Vodafone's customer service record and satisfy yourself that the "200 million subscriber base, broad country coverage, and investment in advanced technologies" aren't blinding you to the one reason I would not choose this company unless I absolutely had to.
I really want an iPhone, but I really, really don't want to be on a contract with Vodafone. I hope you can convince me that you make the right choice for what *I* need from a mobile comms company. If you must go with this operator at least let me have the option to pay full whack for the handset and just have a monthly contract, as I did with O2 and my Sony Ericsson K800i. I don't like to be tied to anyone - it gives them free reign for shoddy service. (O2, I have to say, though, are very good, even if their website and Safari sometimes aren't on the best of terms).
Just please let it not have the Vodafone logo branded onto it in any way.
Apple has yet to say with which international carriers it plans to partner on iPhone distribution, but one Wall Street analyst is citing sources in saying that heavyweight Vodafone is all but a shoe-in for Europe.
Hmm ... whilst Vodafone might have their foot (and enclosing shoe) in the door with Apple, I think what is at issue is them being a shoo-in.
Hmm ... whilst Vodafone might have their foot (and enclosing shoe) in the door with Apple, I think what is at issue is them being a shoo-in.
Doesn't "shoo-in" imply that some sort of rigging has gone on?
Anyway, I'd much prefer Orange to be the partner. Their culture appears closer to that of Apple. Orange is a much smarter, cooler brand.
Hmm ... whilst Vodafone might have their foot (and enclosing shoe) in the door with Apple, I think what is at issue is them being a shoo-in.
They talk about 3G technology for the iPhone in the first half of '08. Can someone please clarify, is 3G technology something that would be internally related to the iPhone as a hardware component or software component.
Remember Steve Job's lament about, and I am paraphrasing, "what if something new and great came along, what are the smart phone manufacturers going to do, add another plastic button, the phones are already out there".
When the iPhone becomes 3G able an/or more storage available than the maximum 8GB, would that apply to the iPhone (first generation) as being able to upgrade utilizing these updates? Or do you have to go out and spend another $499.00 to $599.00 for another phone?
God no, please let it be anyone but Vodafone. 
My god, no, not Vodafone.
I'd rather use 3 in that case.
Apple will have to try a little harder with the iPhone in Europe I suspect. The market there is a little more mature, and the iPhone seems to be lacking some features that may be expected, for example multimedia messaging (MMS) as well as text messaging.
D
The iPhone does have text messaging - it's right there on the main screen - SMS! It threads the conversations in the nice iChat-esque bubbles too.
I don't think they will do MMS, as that is why the iPhone features real email - you can attach as many files as large as you want, and as much text as you want, without being imposed by size and character limits like MMS.
I'm glad it's Vodafone - they are the best network in New Zealand, and If I have to resort to a contract, I'd much rather be with them than Telecom.
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Apple will have to try a little harder with the iPhone in Europe I suspect. The market there is a little more mature, and the iPhone seems to be lacking some features that may be expected, for example multimedia messaging (MMS) as well as text messaging. Another example: it's not clear that the iPhone will work with the mobile video downloads now commonly offered by European TV channels, which would seem wrong for such an expensive device. Still, I'm sure some of these shortcomings will be adressed before launch - I guess the extra time is in part to allow the implementation of 3G or another high speed standard, now quite widespread in Europe. A strong partner like vodaphone can only help Apple adapt the device to the market.
D