Bored of waiting for Apple to launch the iPhone on the network you like? You and a great big wodge of US iPhone users. According to an analyst quoted by Reuters, one quarter of iPhone owners are using their Apple mobiles on networks that aren’t AT&T’s.
If that’s the case, then it’s Apple that should be worried, rather than AT&T (the carrier said last week it had achieved the highest number of quarterly subscriber adds of any US carrier ever after all.) Apple gets a share of data revenues for each AT&T user signed up on an iPhone contract, so for every one that’s off the grid, the company’s bottom line takes a hit – up to $500 million according to Reuters.
It just shows the pulling power of the iPhone – after all, that’s one in four iPhone owners that are risking ending up with a brick the next time Apple updates the device’s firmware.
why is it a risk to users brickign their fone when apple upgrade? mine’s staying at 1.1.1 – i haven’t even entertained the upgrade to 1.1.2 or 1.1.3. Screw that. As for Apple getting rev share of AT&T plans, that makes sense. Here in Canada (where RIM is based) they (RIM) must get compensation from the almost telecommunications monopoly here.