iPhone Conquers the World

Since my Tuesday post, more telcos are claiming—or are rumored—to be carrying iPhones; some unlocked, or one of several carriers in the same region.

Fortune's Apple 2.0 blog has a nifty map of rumored and confirmed iPhone carriers. The count is 27 countries confirmed (mostly in the Americas) and three more rumored. Most of the countries will get iPhone later this year.

As I explained last week, Apple almost certainly will embark on an unlocked phone strategy. Why shouldn't Apple? Everybody else does. Phone manufacturers typically make available locked and unlocked phone models. Locked phones are carrier customized and subsidized. Apple made its early deals with carriers such as AT&T to break into the cell phone market. With iPhone so popular, Apple can—and should—negotiate more favorable terms.

Distribution is now crucial to iPhone's continued success. New touch-screen phones are coming from manufacturers like HTC and Sony Ericsson. These are companies with more mobile phone experience and more to lose from upstart Apple. They have broader carrier relationships and reach many more countries. Competitors are closing on Apple's early innovation lead and, through their own mobiles, magnifying iPhone's weakness, such as no 3G, no Flash support and no video among many other missing features.

Apple's iPod succeeded for many reasons, with broad distribution being one of the most important. The iPhone 2.0 has got to be available everywhere to succeed. Thirty countries, some with multiple carriers, is a good start. But Apple needs carriers in Asia, and more of them in Europe, where HTC, Nokia and Sony Ericsson have stronger distribution. That said, Apple has mostly covered the Americas; the home region is the right start.

Related Posts:

• Separated at Birth?, Apple Watch, May 8, 2008
• iPhone: Vodaphone Calling, Apple Watch, May 6, 2008
• Subsidized iPhone? I Wish, Apple Watch, April 30, 2008

Posted by Joe Wilcox on May 9, 2008 1:50 PM