Apple will start shipping the new iPhone in 20 more countries on August 22nd. Bharti Airtel an Indian cellphone carrier has announced that it will launch the iPhone on August 22nd. Vodafone the other Indian carrier who has partnered with Apple to sell the iPhone in India has yet not announced the launch date for the iPhone. According to some media reports, Vodafone may steal Bharti’s thunder by launching the eagerly awaited phone a few days earlier. The company plans to launch the iPhone few days before on August 18th in India. Apple is known for its tight control over its product launch dates, so it is very unlikely that Vodafone will launch iPhone before 22nd August, the date that Apple announced for its second round of iPhone launch. But if Vodafone does get a preferential treatment it will be a big blow to Bharti Airtel. Both the carriers have yet not announced the price of the phone and the plan required with the phone.
In a Statement released to media Bharti Airtel said that millions of Airtel subscribers will be able to purchase the iPhone at Airtel’s Relationship Centers from August 22nd. Sanjay Kapoor, President, Bharti Airtel said, “iPhone has been an iconic technological revelation of this year and Airtel has been at the forefront of innovation and customer delight in the Indian telecom sector. Introducing iPhone in India further underscores Bharti’s commitment to enrich the communication experience of Airtel users.”
India has almost double the cellphone user base when compared to US. If iPhone becomes a hit, it will be almost impossible to get one in India. Goldman Sachs’ sales breakdown for iPhone 3G clearly shows that most countries that were part of initial iPhone launch on July 11th didn’t even get 10,000 iPhone for the day. In India one big city like Mumbai will need more than 10,000 iPhone to fulfill demand. If Apple and its partners Bharti and Vodafone want a great launch in India they better be ready with more than few hundred thousand handsets for that launch day.
[Via India Times]