Finance News

iPhone India debut by Aug 22

The official launch of the much-waited Apple iPhone in India is finally expected to happen by the end of August. Bharti Airtel, in a statement, said that it will launch the iPhone 3G in India on August 22. Vodafone executives too,said that they expect to launch the iPhone on the same day and will soon come up with a better picture on the launch.

Both the companies refused to disclose the price point at this stage of the launch announcement. Bharti Airtel did not confirm if the iPhone will be available pan India from August 22. Sanjay Kapoor, president of mobile services at Bharti Airtel, said, "iPhone has been the iconic technology revelation of this year." He added, "Airtel has been at the forefront of innovation and customer delight in the Indian telecom sector. Introducing iPhone 3G to India further underscores our commitment to enrich the communication experience of all Airtel users."

Bharti Airtel on May 12, 2008 had announced that it has signed a deal with Apple to bring iPhone to India, later this year. About 69 million subscribers of Bharti Airtel and 49 million subscribers of Vodafone Essar will be able to purchase iPhone through the respective companies' retail outlets. "Details of pricing will be announced at a later date," Bharti Airtel said in the statement.

The iPhone will be embedded with 3G networking that is twice as fast as the existing mobile phones. The phone will also have an in-built GPS system that enables location-based mobile services like navigation and positioning tool. The iPhone 2.0 software includes support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync and runs hundreds of third party applications available through the new App Store.

According to analysts, considering the market conditions in India that are different from the US, the iPhone could be priced above Rs 20,000 and will not be available at a subsidised rate as in the US. Currently, Nokia has a commanding position with its N-Series phones in India and if the iPhone gets popular, it will bring significant market share shift between the two vendors in future. Nokia too has ramped up its R&D work to be in pace with the competition. Big-name vendors such as Motorola and Samsung, that face pressure with declining market shares, are also ramping up to bring design innovation in phones in India. Gartner in its recent report said that in the final quarter of the year, most new products will be introduced to the market.