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U.S. Cellular Turned Down iPhone over 'Unacceptable' Terms from Apple
FierceWireless reports on comments from U.S. Cellular CEO Mary Dillon, who claims that the mobile phone carrier turned down a proposed deal to offer the iPhone because it considered Apple's terms to be "unacceptable". The decision is not final, however, and U.S. Cellular could offer the iPhone at some point in the future if a deal can be struck.
U.S. Cellular turned down Apple's iPhone because it did not make sense for the company economically, CEO Mary Dillon said on the company's third-quarter earnings conference call.U.S. Cellular, headquartered in Chicago, is the sixth-largest mobile phone company in the United States with over 6 million subscribers. Behind the top tier of Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile USA lies a group of so-called "super-regional" carriers led by MetroPCS, U.S. Cellular, and Cricket. Interest in the possibility of these super-regional carriers being able to offer the iPhone was sparked by last month's announcement from C Spire Wireless that it had landed a deal for the iPhone. C Spire ranks at the lower end of the super-regional group, with under a million customers on its network.
Dillon said that the carrier had the opportunity to sell the iPhone but that Apple's "terms were unacceptable from a risk and profitability standpoint." Dillon added that the potential strain on the company's network was not a factor in the decision, and that U.S. Cellular remains open to carrying the iPhone in the future.
Earlier this week, the Czech arm of Telefonica/O2 announced that it would be dropping the iPhone entirely after it was unable to reach a deal with Apple for the iPhone 4S. The company cited Apple's "business terms" as the reason for the discontinuation, and U.S. Cellular's disclosure today adds further evidence that some carriers simply don't see the economic advantage to offering the iPhone even as other carriers are working hard to land the device.
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36 months ago
Very foolish of them. It's their loss.
Maybe. Maybe not. If the model wasn't proving profitable for them - then it's not their loss.
36 months ago
"U.S. Cellular today announced that it hates money and doesn't want any more customers."
36 months ago
No one knows the terms Apple was discussing. Maybe Apple required a guarantee of 20 million up front - or whatever the amount was and USC just didn't want to or have that money to gamble.
Amazing how some people here immediately condemn them just because they didn't sign a deal with Apple as if it's a sin.
Amazing how some people here immediately condemn them just because they didn't sign a deal with Apple as if it's a sin.
36 months ago
That's fine. US Cellular, while being decent in customer service, is generally considered a regional "budget" option similar to Cricket. If they want everything to be free and loaded with crapware, they are more than welcome to keep selling the janky phones they currently carry.
36 months ago
If a cell carrier doesn't like the terms of service Apple must be doing something right.
36 months ago
There will be more carriers saying no.
The newness of the iPhone wears off, the Samsung phones are a strong competitor.
Another sign that Apple shouldn't put all its eggs in the gadget basket and finally turn their attention back to serious users of their computer hardware.
The newness of the iPhone wears off, the Samsung phones are a strong competitor.
Another sign that Apple shouldn't put all its eggs in the gadget basket and finally turn their attention back to serious users of their computer hardware.
36 months ago
Very foolish of them. It's their loss.
you sure about that. Apple could be requiring them to bet the farm and then some on it.
It going to show that Apple is really abusing it power. Verizon and AT&T can push back because of their size but the smaller guys are getting walked.
I kind of want to know what Apple terms are and compare them to what they get and give to other OEMs
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