Mikey Campbell
Amid worries of an iPhone sales slowdown, Apple on Friday took steps to goose demand by expanding a promotional upgrade program for its latest iPhone XS and XR handsets to major markets around the world.
The promotion, which has been heavily advertised in the U.S. since its launch in November, presents prospective buyers with a higher iPhone trade-in value to put toward the purchase of a new iPhone XS and XR.
In the U.S., customers can receive up to $450 when trading in an iPhone X, $350 for an iPhone 8 Plus or $300 for an iPhone 8 or iPhone 7 Plus. The higher than normal trade-in value is subsequently applied to the purchase of a new iPhone XS Max, XS or XR, effectively lowering upgrade pricing for existing iPhone owners.
According to regional Apple websites, similar offers are now available in Australia, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, Taiwan. Beyond North America and Asia, a clutch of European countries — Austria, Belgium, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Sweden, the UK — are also included in the promotion.
As of Friday, the trade-in program is not yet available in Latin America, Africa or India, the latter of which is widely viewed as a key growth market for Apple.
Like product prices, trade-in values fluctuate from country to country, though users in each region should expect a substantial savings on their purchase. The program's end date also varies by region, with countries like China and Japan seeing a cutoff of January 31, 2019, while others have yet to be specified.
Depending on the country, users are able to process the trade-in online via Apple's website. Those areas without online trade-in systems, like China, require customers bring their current iPhone in to an Apple Store for an on-the-spot assessment.
The limited time promotion augments Apple's GiveBack program which normally offers prices on the low end of the trade-in spectrum. Typically, customers can find better deals through third-party firms.
Today's program expansion arrives amidst concerns of slumping iPhone sales. A number of analysts and investment firms tracking Apple's smartphone performance have cut expectations as the company battles global economic headwinds, smartphone saturation, the U.S. and China trade war and other issues. Most recently, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo this month slashed forecasts for the iPhone XR, a mid-tier handset many expected to account for a bulk of Apple's 2019 sales.
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71 Comments
Apple needs the trade-ins to meet the demand for refurbs.
The only way Apple will ever lower the price of it's iPhones is if people stop buying them. But Apple knows there's millions of suckers that need the latest and greatest and will fork down $1k or more for a new iPhone every year.
Btw, I'm still using a BB9900. I'm not paying $800 or more for a damn phone!
Major discounting (which is what this amounts to) three days before Christmas has just one reading in my book: Lower than expected sales. The offer (in this case Spain) is totally in your face, front page, prices in black and white, marketing. Never seen this before.
I was pushed out of an upgrade due to pricing. With this promotion, I am back in. I will take a decision later today after discussing with my wife.
Apples greed has put them in this position, was it worth 50 billion $ in lower valuation? How much has their greed cost in trust? The stockholders can’t be happy with this strategy.