China Mobile and Apple have still not started formal negotiations regarding the iPhone. Details around business models and commercialization in the country have been preventing the companies from entering talks. That being said, both sides are eager and have full intentions of co-operating. No timelines for potential talks have been reported to date.
“Our door will remain open as long as there is customer demand,” said China Mobile Chairman Wang Jianzhou during a panel discussion on the sustained growth and development of the telecom industry.
Demand? Yeah I’d say there’s a demand. China Mobile subscribers currently total more than 380 million… That’s roughly 30% of the country’s total population. China Mobile is expected to reach a subscriber base of nearly 600 million this year.
[via xinuanet]
Mat Pancha // 14/04/2008 at 9:49 am
“Demand? Yeah I’d say there’s a demand. China Mobile subscribers currently total more than 380 million”
This is a Steve Jobs”esque” stat. Meaning, it means nothing.
China Mobile subscribers total more than 380 million, and is expected to reach 600 Million this year. This means they have a user base that is huge. It does not mean they want iPhones.
Honestly, if I lived in Asia, I wouldn’t think twice about an iPhone when there are so many better options available in the continent.