toggle

AAPL Stock: 502.21 ( + 4.54 )

MacNN News

Apple "bends" to Cingular for iPhone deal

updated 03:15 pm EST, Mon January 15, 2007

Apple "bends" to Cingular

Apple "bent" to Cingular with its multi-year exclusive U.S. contract for its entire line of iPhone models, according to Glenn Lurie, Cingular's president of national distribution. "I'm not sure we gave anything," Lurie said, referring to Cingular's side of the deal with Apple for the company's new cellular handset. "I think they bent a lot." Apple's contract with the cellular carrier covers "all models" of the iPhone, including several other devices in the works that could debut in the near future, according to the Cingular executive. Apple's contract doesn't extend outside the U.S., however, leaving the Cupertino-based company free to choose its own carriers overseas.

Cingular expects the iPhone to grow its business by attracting other carriers' customers, and the phone will only be available through Cingular and Apple stores alongside both company's websites. Additionally, Apple and Cingular are to share tech support responsibilities, according to PC Magazine, with 'cross-trained' Cingular reps handing off more complicated questions to trained Apple professionals.

by MacNN Staff

(22)

TAGS :

Apple

Share the Article

Facebook Twitter Delious Slash Dot Digg

toggle

Comments

Peter Bonte
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Aug 2001

0

01/15, 03:43pm | report spam | close Reply |
Subsidized

So Cingular isn't subsidizing part of the cost then?

dscottbuch
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Sep 2000

0

01/15, 03:55pm | report spam | close Reply |
Chestbeating B*LLSH*T

This guy is a sales guy so he prevaricates for a living (sorry a little over the top :). 1) Cingular changed their network for this phone!!! 2) Cingular signed the contract without seeing the phone and couldn't have had much input as they didn't see the product until a few weeks ago.

suhail
Senior User

Joined: Nov 1999

0

01/15, 04:43pm | report spam | close Reply |
crooks

They couldn't have picked bigger crooks to work with than Cingular?

fritzw1957
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Nov 2004

0

01/15, 04:51pm | report spam | close Reply |
Too bad Verizon...

couldn't have been worked with for deployment of the iPhone due to their use of the closed BREW system requirement on their phones.

Not sure if it would be in my best interests to switch to Cingular just because of this (or any other iteration of) cellphone.

elroth
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jul 2006

0

01/15, 05:28pm | report spam | close Reply |
from the article

"So what did Apple get out of this partnership? Lurie said they were attracted to "the people," and the ability to work together to make deals and a product they could keep secret�which they have for two years."

What Apple got is a foot in the door of the phone industry. When the "multi-year" deal runs out (rumor is 2 years, but not confirmed), if there's a clamor for the iPhones, other cellular companies will be lining up to do a deal (different models for different companies?). Or Apple will have another way to open it up.

nat
Junior Member

Joined: Mar 2002

0

01/15, 05:30pm | report spam | close Reply |
bigger crooks

they coulda picked Verizon, the biggest crooks of them all.

LouZer
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Nov 2000

0

01/15, 05:36pm | report spam | close Reply |
Well

Couldn't they just sell a phone sans provider and let people just pick who they want? Why do they need to tie it to ANY service???

TailsToo
Mac Elite

Joined: Jun 2004

0

01/15, 05:39pm | report spam | close Reply |
.

If you guys haven't woken up and seen it, the cell companies are new RIAA.

quiviran
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jan 2007

0

01/15, 05:58pm | report spam | close Reply |
It's the people -

who start bragging how they got the better of the deal less than a week after the public announcement. Hmm - just my kind of business partner. The success of iPhone is dependent on the carrier. How many envelope-pushing features will be crippled (or rented) in order to protect Cingular's (soon to be AT&T, I already dropped them once) "revenue stream".(Asked less politely, How far did Apple have to bend over?) Sad, sad, sad. Better to have teamed with number 3 or 4, who might be agressive with the new possibilities, rather than number 1, just looking to get fatter and more protective of the status quo.

vasic
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: May 2005

0

01/15, 06:23pm | report spam | close Reply |
several reasons

First, Cingular is the only reasonably reliable GSM carrier in the US (T-Mobile is history). To make a phone global, GSM is the only choice; Verizon and Sprint are out.

Second, regardless what the sales guy says, Cingular has made many, many concessions. First and foremost, this is going to be Apple-branded phone. While there may be a little Cingular logo on some screens, Apple will be the one controlling the whole user experience. Considering that handset makers normally make these great phones, only to have operators cripple them in order to preserve revenue streams, this is a huge concession to Cingular. What mobile carrier would allow WiFi on their handset??? "Feel free to switch to WiFi and Skype whenever you can; don't bother using our minutes and plans..."

Apple chose the right carrier. If they do bring extra revenue to Cingular (through the surge of subscribers), they just might be able to strong-arm them into deploying a true 3G data network.

Titanium Man
Forum Regular

Joined: Mar 2001

0

01/15, 08:12pm | report spam | close Reply |
Cingular stinks

Apple chose the right carrier. If they do bring extra revenue to Cingular (through the surge of subscribers), they just might be able to strong-arm them into deploying a true 3G data network. But can they strong-arm Cingular into being something other a bunch of pricks? I refuse to ever deal with Cingular again, not even if my life depended on it.

WiseWeasel
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Apr 1999

0

01/15, 08:18pm | report spam | close Reply |
good for apple

The best measure of a successful negotiation is one where your opponent (potential business partner) thinks that they have the upper hand, while you quietly prepare to pull the rug from under them. What AT&T isn't counting on is that the iPhone will encourage the build-up of WiFi network availability, which bypasses AT&T's network completely. As this aspect of the platform gains more traction, the need for AT&T's cell phone data network deminishes, and eventually, this can lead to a large disruption in what we currently consider to be cell phone network infrastructure versus open internet infrasctructure. It's extremely short-sighted of AT&T executives to think that Apple got the short end of the deal.

ender
Junior Member

Joined: Mar 1999

0

01/15, 08:23pm | report spam | close Reply |
Worse than RIAA...

"If you want an iPhone, you are going to get the luxury of being on the Cingular network"

"there are bad guys out there that unlock phones"

And here I thought the record industry set the standard for delusional arrogance and stupidity. This guy is trying to give them a run for their money. As for his second statement, it's perfectly legal to unlock your phone (of course, it's perfectly legal for Cingular to make it as difficult as possible to do, too).

noitabrutsam
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Sep 2006

0

01/15, 08:32pm | report spam | close Reply |
re: Chestbeating B*LLSH*T

You could pretty much say there is chestbeating BS on both sides with regards to Jobs saying they "changed their network" and iPod VP Tony Fadell saying bow Cingular "broke all their typical process rules to make it happen".

There is hubris and arrogance on both sides thinking they got the upper hand which is utterly ridiculous because in order to make the phone part of the iPhone work, Apple needs to cooperate closely with whichever provider(s) they end up dealing with even after it is released (and this is especially true when they have to negotiate deals in Europe and Asia) and vice versa where the provider needs to have their backend accomodate the features of the iPhone.

It wouldn't be too surprising if Apple will have to make quite a bit of concessions just to get into Japan (look at how long it took them to get the iTunes Store there and the compromises they needed to make).

Drupa
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jul 2005

0

01/15, 09:01pm | report spam | close Reply |
It's over Johnny

Cingular?! They are routinely at the bottom end of the customer service polls, and have the BOTTOM broadband speed of all broadband enabled wireless companies. I simply CANNOT break my contract with Verizon just because the iPhone seems a bit "cooler". Verizon EVDO allows me download speeds around 900Kbps while Cingular is network limited to no more than 100K. Really, why would I do that to myself? My Powerbook uses an EVDO card to work remotely at wired "office" speeds. Cingular simply cannot compete here (which means Apple cannot compete here). Its a shame - the door is WIDE open for competition.

quiviran
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jan 2007

0

01/15, 09:31pm | report spam | close Reply |
Stupid Networks

wiseweasel, I hope you are right. The cell phone companies need to embrace their real reality - they are just entry points to the great digital river in the sky. The quickest way for them to stop wasting their time and energy trying to develop a competitive edge using differences that are meaningless is to adopt GSM as a national standard. (CDMA vs GSM is meaningless except that 180 countries use GSM and we should too. Kind of like we all use 110v 60 cycle power, just because it's a better system-wide approach, the system being the nation) I've always found this very compelling: http://isen.com/stupid.html

I truly hope you are right, but I probably won't be part of the first wave using the iPhone. I've already dropped AT&T once. I won't be going back.

climacs
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Sep 2001

0

01/15, 11:07pm | report spam | close Reply |
Cingular sucks a**

I ditched Cingular for T-Mobile. Couldn't be happier.

So long as iPhone is only available on Cingular, I won't be buying one.

debohun
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Feb 1999

0

01/16, 09:44am | report spam | close Reply |
So does this support or

So does this support or undermine Apple's argument that opening the platform would be a risk? There are hundreds of thousands (millions?) of Windows Mobile phones out there; if they are being so aggressively (and successfully?) hacked to the users benefit and it hasn't collapse the world's communication system yet, is an open system really a risk?

testudo
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Aug 2001

0

01/16, 11:03am | report spam | close Reply |
Re: good for Appl;e

What AT&T isn't counting on is that the iPhone will encourage the build-up of WiFi network availability, which bypasses AT&T's network completely. As this aspect of the platform gains more traction, the need for AT&T's cell phone data network deminishes, and eventually, this can lead to a large disruption in what we currently consider to be cell phone network infrastructure versus open internet infrasctructure.

Oh, that's rich. So the entire country (nay, the WORLD!) will NOW be building-up the WiFi because of Apple's new gadget? Talk about hubris!

And while it sounds great, do you think it then becomes a nation-wide FREE wifi network? Who's paying for all that broadband traffic? And will there be enough bandwidth for all those iPhone users out there? Are you planning on trusting all your communications to Starbucks?

And did Apple actually say you could make phone calls on this over WiFi?

BTW, since its an exclusive deal for two years, Cingular still gets their money for those two years. Which is better then not getting it, because, as you've already stated, the entire cell-phone network industry is slated for bankruptcy, now that Apple has developed a phone. Which is better then Verizon, who, by the end of 2007, will have just 7 customers.

testudo
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Aug 2001

0

01/16, 01:24pm | report spam | close Reply |
Re: you really think

that this closed system of Apple's for the iPhone will last indefinitely ?

People are acting like it can't be or won;t ever be hacked/cracked or modded_

5 minutes after my cell phone was released to the public a couple of years ago - there were mods left and right_

Nice. And how quickly has the iPod been modded/cracked? Where's all the mods for that to add missing features?

And not everyone is in love with using unapproved apps that may fail the second Apple pushes an OS update. Or software that may have no support (as opposed to Apple's software, which is approved but generally has no support).

I can see OSX's built in voice capabilities tied to the speakerphone and an AppleScript or 2 having this thing dialing for pizaa or ordering grocies or calling to set an appointment - no problem_ All while I'm driving down the road - broadcasting my music to my surroundsound speaker system jamming out_

What you can see, and what'll be there, that's two different things. And I just have my doubts that you'll be able to play music AND make calls at the same time. The problem is there's too many people falling over themselves to kill Steve's a** over a product you could only see through a case, like it was the Hope Diamond or something. And they still have four months to fix all the problems with it, add two months for that stupid "FCC approval" c*** Jobs was talking about, before it gets released.

the first ever to run a ful-blown desktop OS [OS X]

Um, its not a full desktop OS, its a pared-down version of an OS, sort of like Windows CE/Mobile. But if you want to pretend its a full OS, that's fine.

Fast iBook
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Mar 2003

0

05/19, 09:10pm | report spam | close Reply |
..........

Well Couldn't they just sell a phone sans provider and let people just pick who they want? Why do they need to tie it to ANY service???

Well, no, not really. Cingular and tmobile use sim cards. I don't know if sprint does, and i know verizon doesn't. This is a costly option as you'd need several models. Firstly sprint uses a PTT network called NexTel. I didn't see a PTT button on the iPhone. Also, you'd need different broadcasting technologies for verizon and the other carriers. I don't know why people keep trying to make cingular out as some company with horrible service. If this were true there is no way in h*** i would stat with them iPhone or not. I think apple too this into though as well, the folks there are not idiots. This isn't just a cell phone by the way, it's an iPod and internet communicator as well. People are focusing far far too much on just the music part or just the cell phone part. This is by all means a landmark device, the first of its kind, and it needs to be taken as and talked about with that in mind.

Fast iBook
Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Mar 2003

0

05/19, 09:21pm | report spam | close Reply |
Just realized...

I just realized that people have been howling at apple for years to bring back the newton...... I think this is the device in question, just under a new post-jobs-return iName. I wonder if anyone who was a mac head before the iPod will buy this phone, or what they think of it. I think it is brilliant, and i can't wait to own one and see for myself.

Show More Comments

Login Here

toggle

Network Headlines

02/16	SumOfUs criticizes FLA head, plans...
02/16	Safari 5.2, Xcode 4.4 seeds reach developers...
02/16	Mountain Lion updates to be funneled...
02/16	Apple shifts schedules for OS X updates...
02/16	Cook sees merging of notebooks, tablets...

Show All

02/16	Cook sees merging of notebooks, tablets...
02/16	Apple claims backing for rights to...
02/16	Intel may push Ivy Bridge back to June...
02/16	Ex-Olympus President, other execs,...
02/15	Sony completes Ericsson stake buyout...

Show All

02/16	Cook sees merging of notebooks, tablets...
02/15	Apple upgrades iBookstore with screenshots...
02/15	Congress asks Apple to answer questions...
02/14	Apple attempting to disrupt Siri hacks...
02/14	Readability iOS app delayed, Android...

Show All

02/16	Garmin nuvi 4.3-inch Portable GPS Navigator...
02/15	Monster iCarPlay Wireless FM Transmitter...
02/14	Refurb. 16GB iPhone 4, now only $259...
02/13	Refurb. Flip UltraHD Pocket Digital...
02/10	$380 off refurbished 2.8GHz Mac Pro...

Show All

toggle

Apple "bends" to Cingular for iPhone deal

updated 03:15 pm EST, Mon January 15, 2007

Apple "bends" to Cingular

Subsidized

Chestbeating BLLSHT

crooks

Too bad Verizon...

from the article

bigger crooks

Well

.

It's the people -

several reasons

Cingular stinks

good for apple

Worse than RIAA...

re: Chestbeating BLLSHT

It's over Johnny

Stupid Networks

Cingular sucks a**

So does this support or

Re: good for Appl;e

Re: you really think

..........

Just realized...

Login Here

Register for our weekly email newsletter:

Connect tools:

Subscribe

to our RSS

Follow us

on Twitter

10 Most Read

10 Most Discussed

MacNN Marketplace

Apple "bends" to Cingular for iPhone deal

updated 03:15 pm EST, Mon January 15, 2007

Apple "bends" to Cingular

Related Articles

Recent Articles

Subsidized

Chestbeating B*LLSH*T

crooks

Too bad Verizon...

from the article

bigger crooks

Well

.

It's the people -

several reasons

Cingular stinks

good for apple

Worse than RIAA...

re: Chestbeating B*LLSH*T

It's over Johnny

Stupid Networks

Cingular sucks a**

So does this support or

Re: good for Appl;e

Re: you really think

..........

Just realized...

Login Here

Register for our weekly email newsletter:

Connect tools:

Subscribe

to our RSS

Follow us

on Twitter

10 Most Read

10 Most Discussed

MacNN Marketplace

Chestbeating BLLSHT

re: Chestbeating BLLSHT