FEATURE | iPhone
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The launch of the iPhone on the Vodafone network is a major coup for the telecoms provider. But what is the likely impact of the announcement on Vodafone customers and on the market?
DEREK OWENS reports.
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A Game CHAnGER?
FEW PRODUCTS IN RECENT TIMES have
generated such white-hot hype as Apple’s iPhone. Its blend of mobile phone, iPod, email browser and camera has been recognised as revolutionary since it was first unveiled in 2007. Since then, a huge range of handy applications (or ‘apps’) have been developed by Apple itself and third parties, allowing the device to perform a mind-boggling array of functions, which continues to feed the buzz. Incidentally, as InBusiness goes to press, a Google search for ‘iPhone’ generates some 471 million results. Little wonder, then, that Vodafone Ireland has been so keen to trumpet that it can offer the device to its customers. Originally only available here on the O2 network, the must have gadget has been freed from a monopoly provider almost two years after its Irish release. Any notion that the intervening years had dimmed the iPhone’s ability to generate interest were quickly dispelled by the re-action: before the release day of 25th March was even announced, says Vodafone spokesperson Christine Heffernan, the company received over 20,000 expressions of interest from both Vodafone and non-Vodafone customers. “All the feedback has been hugely positive – we know our customers have been excited by this. They want it, and we’re delighted to be bringing it to them,” she says. “The iPhone has a universal appeal.”
50 InBusiness May 10
“i’ve talked to
lots of people
who’ve said ‘i’d love aN iphoNe
but i’m oN
vodafoNe’.”
– dermot daly
A CONTINUED BUZZ
Indeed, while technology analyst Damien Mulley acknowledges that many Apple devotees will have bought their iPhones by now, he does still see potential for growth. “When they first arrived – even before the 3G version came out – the people that wanted it, bought it, and they didn’t care how much they paid. For the Apple ‘fanboys’, that market is saturated. It’s now going to be more general users getting it,” he says, noting that the device’s own qualities will give Vodafone – and O2 – a boost. “It will probably create more of a hunger for the iPhone as you see more people with it. It’s one of the best products in the world for selling itself: people that own one of the handsets help show it off too. So it’ll probably generate more sales for both O2 and Vodafone,” adds Mulley. Dermot Daly, a developer of iPhone apps,
WATCHING AND LEARNING
O2’s head-start in getting to the Irish market certainly doesn’t worry Christine Heffernan, who notes that watching their competitors selling and serving the device here also has its advantages. “We have learnt from the experiences of other operators when they launched the iPhone, and we’ve invested significantly ensuring that Vodafone is the best network for it,” she says. “This is verified by independent drive tests that are currently being undertaken. We have invested considerable resources and time into ensuring that customers will have the best iPhone experience on Vodafone. We have also invested nearly €1bn developing 3G services in Ireland and we continue to invest despite the downturn. As a result, we’ve got a highly reliable, high capacity and fast network
is similarly bullish. “I’d expect the market to double pretty quickly. There’s a pent up demand for it on the Vodafone side of things. Anecdotally, I’ve talked to lots of people who’ve said ‘I’d love an iPhone but I’m on Vodafone,’ either on a company basis or historically,” he says. “If somebody’s just buying it for a lifestyle, O2 saw a return when they first came out with it and, when the 3G versions came out last year, they probably saw a good return. But I think there would be far more people waiting for their company account.”
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