Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Was the iPhone’s Launch in China Really a Bust?
Apple’s internationally coveted iPhone finally arrived at market in China last week and by most accounts its debut was uncharacteristically muted. There is “no sign of the sort of sellout reception that greeted the smart phone at its introduction in other countries,” The Wall Street Journal reported. Clearly, the device’s Chinese launch wasn’t the rousing success to which we’ve become accustomed. That said, it probably wasn’t quite the bust it’s been made out to be, either.
If China Unicom and Apple haven’t already inked a deal to bring the iPhone to China, they’re very close to doing so. This morning, a report in Shanghai Securities News claimed the two companies had reached an agreement that grants China Unicom three years of exclusivity. 
It’s been nearly a year and China Mobile is still in talks with Apple about bringing the iPhone to China, though the revenue-sharing issue that had stalled them was resolved back in July. Now we know why the talks keep dragging on: hardware localization. 
