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The word is out: SingTel has finally confirmed it will be launching the iPhone (picture) here, nearly a year after it burst onto the American market.
And if that is not already good news for consumers hankering to get their hands on one, there is talk yet that all three local telcos could stock the ultra-trendy Apple smartphone come Christmas time.
"We expect all three operators in Singapore to offer the iPhone by the end of the year," a StarHub spokesperson said confidently.
But matters are not as clear as that, with yesterday's terse announcement by SingTel and its affiliates Bharti Airtel, Optus and Globe on bringing the iPhone to Singapore, India, Australia and the Philippines throwing up more questions, industry analysts say.
For one, Apple and SingTel have so far declined to provide further details on pricing or a launch date. TODAY had reported nearly two months back that SingTel might launch the iPhone here in September with a possible $690 price tag.
And then there is the question of whether the telco, Singapore's biggest mobile operator with about 41 per cent market share, will adopt Apple's revenue-sharing model.
Under this model, Apple takes a cut from the subscription that consumers pay the telco. In the exclusive deals, operators such as AT&T in the United States and O2 in the United Kingdom do not let subscribers use the iPhone with another mobile operator as it has been electronically locked a practice known as SIM-locking.
While Singapore's Infocomm Development Authority prohibits telcos from SIM-locking, according to its competition code, they can negotiate exclusive deals with handset makers if it does not "unreasonably restrict competition" here.
"This means even though they can't do a SIM-lock, Apple can still distribute and sell exclusively through SingTel," said Mr Aloysius Choong, an analyst and research manager from data research company IDC.
Having said that, earlier this month, Apple sealed major deals that effectively made the iPhone available through multiple carriers in Italy, India and Australia. So, it might be fair to expect a similar deal being offered through StarHub and M1 eventually.
SingTel could divulge more information on its deal with Apple when it announces its quarterly and yearly financial results tomorrow.
What seems clear is the edge an exclusive arrangement would give SingTel, with mobile number portability to kick in on June 13.
And with its sophisticated web-browsing capabilities letting consumers access the Internet as they would on a desktop computer — the iPhone is also expected to drive telcos' revenue from data usage, an area that has seen relatively little growth here despite its wide availability, an analyst added.
FASTER, CHEAPER DATA PLANS?
With more than 10,000 iPhones reportedly already in use by savvy consumers here who bought from parallel importers, online sellers or in the United States the move by SingTel may seem a little late.
But the telco could tout various advantages of upgrading to its phones, especially as it is expected to bring in the newer 3G version of the iPhone to be launched by June.
The difference? Users will be able to access the Internet on the go at much faster speeds, instead of being anchored to a wireless hotspot.
Analyst Aloysius Choong said: "For most users, it will bring home the point that the mobile Internet is a useful thing to have. Operators will likely push subscription contracts with data plans and might subsidise the price of the iPhone, bringing mobile Internet access to the mass market."
Also, iPhone owners who have hacked or tweaked the software on their current sets to make it work with the local mobile networks would have voided their warranty.
Mr Geoff Liang, a multimedia educator, said: "I would rather wait for the phone to be sold here officially. Why would I spend so much to hack it now and void my warranty?"
But sales executive Eric Chua, who bought his iPhone from the US earlier this year for around $700, is not yet convinced.
"I don't really use 3G, I use Wifi instead since it's free," he said. "The telcos should bundle cheaper or even unlimited data plans for the iPhone." - TODAY/ar
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