Apple launches iPad and iPhone 4 in China
September 30, 2010 Category Uncategorized
Apple has launched Wi-Fi iPads in China on September 17, starting from CNY3,988 for the 16GB model, CNY4,788 for 32GB and CNY5,588 for the 64GB iPad. The 3G iPad models, which support both 3G and Wi-Fi, have not yet been released officially on the Chinese market. Those prices are about 15% higher than the prices in the United States and Hong Kong. China Unicom, Apple’s domestic partner, also started selling the iPhone 4 16G through a deposit of CNY5,880 as an upfront fee with a two-year contract. The 32G will cost CNY6,999 for the same two-year contract. Finally, Apple also released a new family of iPods. Apple’s revenue in China grew about 200% year on year in the six months ended March, to USD1.3 billion, or 4.4% of the United States-based company’s global turnover in that period. The iPhone’s appeal has resulted in sharp growth in demand for Apple’s Macintosh desktop and laptop computers in China, where it shipped 115,000 units in the second quarter this year, up from 50,000 units in the same period a year earlier. Apple also announced plans to expand the number of its own retail stores in China to 25 from the existing four – two of which have been recently opened – and the number of authorized domestic resellers to 2,000 from 1,200.
China Unicom received more than 10,000 pre-orders in Shanghai for the iPhone 4 while its stock only amounted to about 4,000 units for its more than 50 outlets. Suning received more than 9,300 pre-orders in Shanghai and had only 1,100 at its 25 major outlets in the city. China Unicom outlets in Shanghai saw queues of up to 100 customers. The iPhone 4 cost as much as CNY12,000 when it was first available on China’s gray market in June, but after the two companies announced the official price for the iPhone 4, the gray market price dropped
to CNY5,500. For customers, a lower price and a repair guarantee are the main reasons for buying an official iPhone 4. “Since China Unicom launched the iPhone in China in October 2009, user response has been very positive,” said Li Gang, Senior Vice President of China Unicom. The operator has sold more than 700,000 iPhones in China since it started cooperating with Apple in 2009. China Unicom did not reveal the timeframe for launching the 3G iPad in China.
According to a report by Deutsche Bank Equity Research Asia, Apple is seeking to enable broader iPhone adoption outside the China Unicom network. Thousands of iPhone 4’s were sold on the first day it became available on the Chinese mainland, through Apple’s four branded stores, China Unicom’s outlets and the Suning Appliance electronic retail chain. Apple also made unlocked iPones available to be used on China Mobile’s 2G network. They are not compatible with the 3G network based on the TD-SCDMA standard used by China Mobile. China Telecom is expected to launch a version of the iPhone compatible with its CDMA2000 3G network early next year.
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