11/18, 12:25pm
Exclusivity deals now hampering growth
The iPhone could soon become the UK's most popular smartphone, claims a Canalys analyst. Presenting at yesterday's Canalys Mobility Forum event in London, Pete Cunningham observed that the iPhone was the most popular smartphone in France during Q3 2009, a result of the end of an exclusive deal between Apple and regional carrier Orange. The French government ruled that the deal violated competition regulations.
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11/10, 3:45pm
Many more units needed to reach record
Orange has already sold over 30,000 iPhones in its first day of UK iPhone sales, according to company figures. Sales began at 7AM local time, and hit the 30,000 mark by 4PM, leaving room for after-work shoppers to increase the launch tally further. The company claims to have broken the all-time record for single-day phone sales in the UK.
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11/10, 9:40am
Orange counts 250,000 in preregistrations
Orange on Tuesday became the second official iPhone carrier in the UK, marking an end to an exclusivity held by O2 since late 2007. Some 250,000 pre-subscriptions are said to have been recorded by Orange, which if translated into the first 48 hours of sales could put the launch on par with the original in June 2007, when Apple and AT&T sold 270,000 units in the US. Market research group Mediacells suggests that Orange could generate over £795 million in revenue from the iPhone by the end of 2010, though after the cost of purchasing phones the number may shrink to £500 million. Over 1 million Orange iPhone users are predicted.
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11/09, 4:25pm
Combines tethering, home Internet
UK carrier O2 has announced a new "Bolt On" option for iPhone subscribers, the Total Connectivity package. The plan combines O2's £9.79, 3GB per month tethering Bolt On with a standard O2 Home Broadband connection, at no extra cost. The deal is explicitly associated with the iPhone 3G however, and will be available only between November 10th and December 31st.
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11/06, 11:10am
Telefonica Europe CEO answers questions
UK iPhone owners subscribed to O2 will indeed be allowed to unlock for other carriers, according to the CEO of O2's parent company, Telefonica Europe. "Once the iPhone becomes available on other UK networks," says Matthew Key, "we will allow O2 customers to unlock their iPhones, although of course they will still need to honour any outstanding contract period they have. At the end of their contract period, they are entirely free to move to another operator -- though naturally we hope they won't want to!"
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11/04, 12:25pm
Calls 750MB more than enough
Orange UK has begun publicly responding to criticisms of its upcoming iPhone plans. At the center of complaints is the company's unlimited data provision, attached to each iPhone subscription. In reality data use is restricted by a 750MB "fair usage" policy, in sharp contrast to other iPhone carriers, such as O2 UK and AT&T.
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11/03, 9:55am
Low data caps, blocked services source of concern
Orange UK is already being criticized for its data policies in regards to the iPhone, the BBC reports. The carrier yesterday announced its intentions to launch the iPhone on November 10th. Mentioned in subscription plans however is a 750MB "fair usage" limit on data, despite other marketing claims that data is unlimited, as at rival iPhone carrier O2.
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11/02, 9:40am
Options include subscription, pre-paid plans
Orange UK has publicly confirmed a 7AM, November 10th launch date for the iPhone, and simultaneously announced final pricing schemes. Non-business subscriptions range in cost from approximately £30 per month to £125, based on the number of texts and voice minutes a person selects, and the choice of an 18- or 24-month contract. People paying £125 a month can not only receive unlimited voice and texts, but included roaming voice and data allowances.
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10/26, 10:20am
Will help open new shopping complex
Apple is set to open a second Scottish Apple Store on October 29th, in the northern city of Aberdeen. As with a recent Welsh store opening, the Aberdeen launch is unusual in that it is occurring mid-week, and at a time other than 10AM. Hours are expected to run from 12PM to 8PM on opening day, before switching to a regular start time of 9AM.
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10/26, 9:30am
May try to circumvent offering lower prices
The UK division of Orange will begin iPhone sales on November 10th, according to regional newspaper The Guardian. Although Orange originally announced its intentions to carry the iPhone in late September, it has been hesitant to provide many more details. The date of the 10th is said to be significant though, as it is allegedly the day after O2's iPhone exclusivity ends.
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10/22, 11:55am
Company reverses course on smartphones
3 UK is hoping to carry the iPhone 3GS sometime in 2010, according to the carrier's CEO, Kevin Russell. Russell comments that the company has had a deficit of smartphones to date, as a result of focusing on conventional phones in order to build up a subscriber base. That should change in 2010, as the company intends to add a variety of high-end smartphones to its network. Efforts are beginning late this year with devices like the HTC Hero.
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10/21, 12:00pm
Expands retail outlets to Welsh capital
Apple is set to launch a new Apple Store in the Welsh capital of Cardiff, according to an announcement. The St. David's 2 outlet is atypically scheduled to open on a Thursday, specifically October 22nd at 10:30 AM. Apple most often opens stores on Saturdays, and half an hour earlier. The Cardiff location may nevertheless attract a number of shoppers, as the surrounding area is believed to have 2.9 million residents, and an average of 27 million visitors every year.
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10/13, 3:25pm
Region may see intense iPhone competition
T-Mobile is not the only UK carrier distributing iPhones unofficially, a report claims. The Telegraph says it has learned that 3 is also engaged in giving iPhones to its most lucrative customers, though 3's involvement in the strategy is thought to be recent, having only begun in recent weeks. T-Mobile has allegedly been giving away iPhones since the summer.
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10/13, 9:20am
Phones 4u to support multiple carriers
UK retailer Phones 4u has announced a deal to begin selling the iPhone, both online and through its stores. Devices will be paired either with the original UK iPhone carrier, O2, or else Orange, which is slated to begin support later this year. Phones 4u has not mentioned a particular timeline for starting sales, or what special discounts it might offer, if any.
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10/01, 10:55am
Part of continuing global trend
O2's UK division has temporarily run out of the iPhone 3GS, according to the Telegraph. Both the 16 and 32GB models are no longer available from the company's online store, and most physical outlets are said to have been without phones for two weeks. Supplies of the 32GB model were only depleted on or after September 28th.
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09/29, 10:20am
Both regions gaining multiple iPhone carriers
International carrier Vodafone has announced plans to sell the iPhone in both Ireland and the United Kingdom. As sales will only begin in early 2010, few details are available, though via the web interested buyers can sign up for more information as it becomes available. Specific release dates, phone prices and subscription costs should be released in the near future.
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09/25, 10:55am
App awaited approval for over a year
The European carrier O2 has denied involvement in delaying approval of an iPhone app, 0870, that assists customers with avoiding call fees, according to Guardian Technology. The application is designed to find standard land-line alternatives for businesses using numbers beginning with 084 or 087, which bring additional per-minute charges above the standard rates for the wireless contract.
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09/03, 11:35am
Recent incident only one of several
UK carrier O2 has once again encountered severe data interruptions, significantly impacting iPhone owners, multiple sources say. The most recent outages began during the region's Bank Holiday weekend, and O2 has confirmed a problem that "lasted for around two hours on Saturday." According to PC Advisor and comments posted on O2 and Register forums however, outages have extended well past Saturday, running into Wednesday morning.
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08/17, 10:50am
Apple media control effort
Apple tried twice to interfere with the publication of a profile of Steve Jobs in the UK's Sunday Times newspaper, says the article's author, Bryan Appleyard. One PR representative from the company is said to have spoken with Appleyard directly, insisting that Apple wants to "discourage profiles." The company then contacted the editor of the Times, asking to have the article withheld entirely.
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08/05, 9:30am
O2's UK iPhone deadline
O2's exclusive hold on UK iPhone sales should end October 9th, says Mobile Entertainment. The magazine claims to have seen documentation revealing the deadline, the earliest possible date that rivals such as Orange and T-Mobile could begin selling iPhones. O2 has been the only official carrier in the region since 2007; while it is thought that the company should have general rights until 2012, overriding exclusivity will have to end before 2010.
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08/03, 11:50am
T-Mobile UK iPhone deal
T-Mobile UK has already begun distributing the iPhone 3G to some customers, a report says. Rumored late last month, the scheme is believed to be addressed towards people threatening to leave the carrier. Eligible subscribers must be paying over £75 a month, and only 50 T-Mobile agents are authorized to offer an iPhone, up to a maximum of three per week, per agent.
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08/03, 11:00am
Liverpool iPod explodes
Apple is continuing to use legal tools to silence talk of iPod fires, according to UK publication The Times. The newspaper points to an incident in Liverpool last month, in which an iPod touch, belonging to 11-year-old Ellie Stanborough, exploded. Her father Ken was holding the player just prior to the eruption. "It made a hissing noise," he says. "I could feel it getting hotter in my hand, and I thought I could see vapor."
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07/31, 12:40pm
iPhone SMS patch on Sat.?
A new iPhone security update should be available on Saturday, claims a spokesperson for the device's UK carrier, O2. "We will be communicating to customers both through the website and proactively," the spokesperson says. Apple has not announced or previewed any iPhone firmware update beyond the major iPhone 3.1 release.
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07/30, 4:00pm
UK's ASA backs Apple
The UK's Advertising Standards Authority has ruled in favor of Apple in a third case involving iPhone ads, reports say. Some 10 complaints were filed with the ASA in relation to a recent TV spot, which emphasizes the wide variety of iPhone apps available and insists they are "only on the iPhone." That last statement is inaccurate, the complaints allege, because the T-Mobile G1 also has access to a variety of apps at a separate store.
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07/21, 10:00am
Churchill Square store
The first Apple Store to launch in Brighton, England will throw open its doors on July 25th at 10AM, Apple has announced. The shop is located within the Upper Mall at Churchill Square, and has been a long time in coming, as the first job openings are said to have been advertised two years ago. Store hours are set from 9AM to 6PM between Monday and Wednesday, 9AM to 8PM on Thursday, and 9AM to 7PM on Friday and Saturday. Sunday hours are 11AM to 5PM.
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07/20, 9:40am
T-Mobile hunts for iPhones
The UK division of T-Mobile is hunting around Europe for unlocked iPhones, says the Telegraph. Sources inside T-Mobile claim the company is looking to offer the phones to people planning to leave for O2, the UK's largest mobile carrier. T-Mobile is only the region's fourth-largest carrier, and stemming further defections is argued to be worth the expense of buying unlocked devices. At retail, SIM-free iPhones can cost several hundred Euros.
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07/15, 1:00pm
UK Kindle coming in 2009?
Amazon is almost ready to set a UK release date for the Kindle, claims Mobile. Manufacturing responsibilities for a UK Kindle are said to be going to Qualcomm, who is also allegedly responsible for finding a regional cellular carrier. One of the selling points of the American Kindle is free EVDO data, supplied by Sprint, which lets users download books and browse the web.
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07/15, 10:25am
T-Mobile on UK iPhone
T-Mobile UK will not respond to rumors that it could begin carrying the iPhone 3G, according to an official statement. The company dismisses reports of negotiations as "merely speculation," on which it cannot comment. The statement does not represent a denial however, leaving an open end to the idea that T-Mobile could become the UK's second iPhone carrier.
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07/13, 2:55pm
UK iPhone exclusive ending
O2's UK exclusivity deal for the iPhone may be coming to an end within the next few months, T-Mobile suggests. The latter company says that it is already in talks with Apple, and could begin carrying the iPhone 3G within a matter of months. The iPhone 3GS has not been mentioned by T-Mobile so far, nor is it said to have been brought up by Orange, also rumored to be pushing for UK sales.
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07/01, 11:25am
O2 sells out of iPhone 3GS
O2 UK has sold out of the iPhone 3GS, according to the carrier's inventory tracker. Citing "phenomenal demand," the company says it has run out of stock for every ordering method, including online, by phone and at retail locations. More stock is only expected by the end of the week, though O2 adds that the iPhone 3G remains available everywhere.
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06/30, 2:50pm
Ive to get honorary degree
Apple's senior VP of industrial design, Jonathan Ive, is receiving an honorary doctorate from the Royal College of Art in the UK. The presentation will take place on July 1st, following tonight's RCA dinner, where Ive is delivering a speech under the theme "Innovation Night." The school is the only institution in the world specializing in postgraduate degrees for art and design.
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06/19, 9:45am
iPhone 3G S goes on sale
In early-morning launches at carrier and Apple Stores, the iPhone 3G S has gone on sale in different eight countries, including the likes of the United States, Canada, France and Germany. The most prominent launch so far has been the one at the Fifth Avenue Apple Store in New York City, where despite less press coverage and lower publicity from Apple, approximately 200 people waited in line to be some of the first in the US to own a 3G S. The Soho and 14th Street stores in New York bore witness to smaller lineups.
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06/09, 11:00am
Carphone and iPhone 3GS
The iPhone 3GS is seeing considerable early interest in the UK, claims third-party retailer Carphone Warehouse. The company announced preordering intentions shortly after the end of Apple's WWDC keynote, and claims that over 6,000 people registered for more information within a two-hour period. Preorders are scheduled to open on June 10th.
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05/28, 9:40am
UK MacBook price hike
Apple's modest increase of specifications for the white MacBook -- including 800MHz RAM, a 160GB hard drive and a 2.13GHz CPU -- has led to a price increase in the UK, local Mac users note. Having formerly been priced at £719, the notebook now costs £749 in the region. In spite of having the same hardware, the US version has remained at $999.
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05/21, 10:20am
iTunes Live London '09
Apple has announced details of the 2009 iTunes Live London Festival, which is being staged at The Roundhouse in Camden. The event will run throughout the entire month of July, and headline acts such as Oasis, Kasabian, Snow Patrol and The Saturdays. Paolo Nutini and Flo Rida are also confirmed as acts, but Apple notes that some 50 more spots in its concert lineup have yet to be disclosed.
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05/14, 4:40pm
Vodafone cuts roaming fees
Vodafone UK has announced a new promotion, Vodafone Passport, that will allow customers to make calls or send text and picture messages without paying roaming charges as they travel across 35 countries in Europe this summer. The carrier will also reduce prices for international calls. The changes apply to pay-as-you-go or monthly subscribers, beginning June 1st and running until the end of August.
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04/29, 12:55pm
RIM to expand at retail
Research in Motion may have plans to expand its retail presence worldwide, reports from England indicate. Though the company's BlackBerry smartphones constitute one of the most popular brands, RIM has only so far maintained a small number of shops within its home country of Canada. The first location outside of regional borders should be in London, say staff from a flagship Selfridges department store, situated on Oxford Street.
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04/28, 1:00pm
Nokia 5800 Star Trek
Nokia has announced a new movie tie-in edition of its 5800 XpressMusic phone. The Star Trek variant is preloaded with four custom screensavers, as well as three new wallpapers, and eight ringtones based on movie sound effects. Also loaded is a Phazer application, which simulates the series' famous guns.
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04/27, 3:40pm
Vodafone iPhone portal
The UK division of Vodafone has launched a beta version of an iPhone web portal, regional reports observe. The site is customizable, and offers access to news content from the likes of Sky and the BBC, as well as games, weather and traffic info, plus access to services such as Flickr and Twitter. Notably, the Vodafone Homepage is described as "available to all iPhone users including non-Vodafone customers."
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04/20, 1:30pm
UK iPhone sales sluggish
Sales of the iPhone are faring poorly at third-party UK vendor Carphone Warehouse, writes The Telegraph. The official carrier for the UK, O2, recently enacted new discounts, in which an 8GB iPhone is free with a £35 monthly subscription, and a 16GB model is free with a £45-per-month plan. Either option also requires agreeing to a two-year contract, however, rather than a standard 18-month period.
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04/20, 12:40pm
HTC Magic for Vodafone
HTC's Magic smartphone, only the second device to be based on Google's Android platform, is now available for pre-order through Vodafone UK. The phone should ship on May 5th, and can be had for free when signing up for a subscription worth £30 per month. A £5 monthly discount applies to online purchases. Other Vodafone divisions are also expected to carry the phone soon, such as Vodafone Italy.
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04/16, 3:00pm
BBC cross-platform iPlayer
The BBC has released a completed version of the iPlayer Desktop, a cross-platform application that lets users download recent BBC programming, rather than simply view it on the web or TV. The app is based on Adobe's AIR platform, and is compatible with Mac, Windows and Linux systems. Access is restricted to residents of the UK however, and files are set to expire and delete automatically after a given timeframe, no longer than 30 days.
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03/30, 11:40am
Britain vs. gun apps
Anti-gun organizations in the UK are expressing "outrage" over a collection of gun-based iPhone applications at the App Store, according to regional newspapers. Leading these is an advisory group for the Operation Trident program at the London Metropolitan Police, which is aiming to suppress gun crime. "This [gun app collection] is hugely irresponsible in a climate when we are trying to get guns off the streets," says the advisory group's chair, Claudia Webbe.
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03/26, 12:15pm
UK iPhoners take to web
New analysis indicates that iPhone owners are using the data functions of their phone far more than other people in the UK, Reuters notes. Figures from comScore suggest that over 90 percent of British iPhone users are making use of "mobile media," defined as including aspects like websites, e-mail, social networking and games. Some 79.7 percent of iPhone users are said to have regularly accessed news and information in a quarter ending with January, as compared to 48 percent of other smartphone users, and 19.8 percent of general cellphone owners.
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03/23, 12:00pm
Channel 4 iPhone 3.0 fund
UK broadcaster Channel 4 has set up a special fund for iPhone 3.0 development, according to an announcement. As a part of its 4 Innovation for the Public (4iP) project, the company is setting aside £100,000 (approximately $145,760) for developers looking to build games and other iPhone apps that serve its public purposes. Individual development groups will be able to claim up to £30,000, though it is likely that actual payouts will be substantially less. Opportunities for grant proposals are slated to close on April 16th.
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03/20, 9:30am
O2 iPhones discounted
Adding substance to recent rumors, UK carrier O2 has announced expanded availability for free iPhones. Beginning on April 3rd instead of the hinted May, O2 says it will offer an 8GB phone for free alongside a £35 monthly plan, and a 16GB phone for free with a £45 plan. In either case, a two-year subscription will be required.
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03/12, 4:45pm
O2 planning May price cut?
UK phone carrier O2 is poised to drop prices on the iPhone 3G come May, claims a regional magazine. Mobile cites exclusive information, pointing to the device becoming free with £35 or £45 per month subscriptions. The 8GB iPhone is currently free with £45 and £75 plans, while the 16GB model is free only at the £75 level. Practical costs of iPhone ownership can rise as high as £159 a month.
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02/26, 1:30pm
UK iPhone hits 1 million
Over 1 million iPhones have been sold in the United Kingdom, regional carrier O2 has announced. The company has typically been reticent about publishing iPhone figures, making the new number one of the few available; the announcement may in fact reveal that sales of the iPhone have been unexpectedly slow, given free publicity provided by the media, and the UK's status as one of the first regions to receive the device.
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02/20, 4:55pm
iTunes blipvert pushes U2
A recent ad deployed through the United Kingdom's Absolute Radio -- formerly known as Virgin Radio -- has generated some controversy, writes The Guardian. The ad promotes the new U2 single "Get On Your Boots," urging listeners to buy it through iTunes. The spot is only 10 seconds long though, and required approval from the UK's Ofcom regulatory body due to worries about issues such as subliminal advertising.
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02/05, 9:25am
Early 2009 store plans
Apple has already begun its retail store expansion plans for 2009, with photos emerging of construction in Greensboro, NC, along with a building approval for a long-awaited Georgetown location and several international locations, including Brighton in the UK, and Ottawa, Canada. A tipster who observed workers building the Greensboro store notes that the workers were standing on what appeared to be a palette with a railing made from 2x4s.
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