China Mobile running 400000 unlocked iPhones

Posted on 18. Feb, 2008 by Saarthak in Gadgets

According to market research firm In-Stat, over 400,000 of Apple’s iPhone product are being used with the China Mobile provider despite the lack of availability of iPhone in China and breakdown of talks between the two companies.

apple iphone The company sold 3.7 million iPhones in 2007, and there was a noticeable gap between the number of units sold and those that were activated by providers in the U.S. and Europe that Apple holds exclusive deals with.

Despite Apple’s attempts to keep iPhone unlocking under wraps with new software and changes to the iPhone’s bootloader, enterprising entrepreneurs are apparently giving the people what they want. This is a bit of an opportunity lost for Apple, since the company has signed lucrative revenue-sharing deals with its carrier partners that don’t apply if an iPhone is unlocked from its respective network.

At least it does highlight the demand for the iPhone among China’s massive population. In-Stat said that Chinese consumers want smartphones with multimedia features and Web browsing, and the iPhone fills that need nicely. Apparently, they are willing to pay for it: 20 percent of smartphones sold in China last year went for $533 or more.

Apple’s talk breakdown with China Mobile was downplayed by CEO Steve Jobs, who claims there was only ever really one meeting. The iPhone is poised to make its Asian debut in 2008.