M1 gets a bite of Apple iPhone
By Faith Quek
SINGAPORE – M1 will begin selling the Apple iPhone later this year, breaking SingTel’s year-long monopoly on the coveted touch-screen smartphone.
M1 said on Tuesday in a press release that it has secured a deal with the American computer conglomerate to sell the iPhone and “looked forward to offering the iPhone and a range of tailored service plans to customers in Singapore”.
The question on most consumers’ mind now is perhaps the cost of the iPhone and its data plans by M1.
Marketing manager Taylor Ng, 28, said: “M1 has much to do about catching up with SingTel. Besides, M1’s main customer base is [made up of] mainly youths who do not have the earning power yet. Hence, I’m expecting cheaper rates when M1 launches its iPhones.”
According to earlier reports by The Straits Times, an M1 spokesperson said that the company will bring in the latest model but declined to provide further information like availability dates and pricing.
In anticipating a price battle against M1, SingTel replied to a letter in TODAY that its price plans will be reviewed regularly to ensure continual offering of the “best value” to customers while providing the “latest and most innovative mobile devices and services” to remain competitive in the market.
Due to its exclusive rights over iPhone sales, SingTel has sold over 100,000 iPhones for the past 14 months and has gained a lucrative foothold of its competitors’ share of post-paid mobile customers. However, M1 is expecting to recoup the customers they have lost over the year.
This latest move by M1 leaves StarHub as the only local telco operator without access to the touch-screen smartphone.
According to The Business Times, StarHub’s chances of bringing in the iPhone remain slim due to two factors: the need to commit high volume sales and revenue-sharing with Apple. Market analysts who spoke to The Business Times forecasted the recent loss of the English Premier League (EPL) rights to SingTel as a prelude to more pay-TV losses. Hence, attaining the distribution rights of selling iPhone would further stretch the company’s bottom line as StarHub would have to share part of its revenue with Apple.
Relationship manager Jaslyn Khoo, 36, a StarHub subscriber said: “StarHub needs to restore investors’ confidence, especially with the recent lost of the English Premier League (EPL) rights to SingTel and probably market share (as well) due to the iPhone duopoly.”
She added that StarHub’s competitive advantage lies in its “network infrastructure of the highest mobile data network speeds” among its competitors and predicted that “it is only a matter of when since the telco companies are known to be very competitive.”
However, market watchers cautioned that the entrance of StarHub will worsen the imminent slow breakeven point of M1 and SingTel when the former officially takes its place as an alternative provider of the iPhone. According to The Business Times, analysts expect the impending price battles to cause the telco companies to recoup their investment in one year, up from the initial nine months when SingTel monopolised the iPhone market in Singapore.
__________________________________________________________________
Microsoft wheels out new Windows Mobile 6.5
By Brandon Tan Yuan Yu
AMIDST the hype over Apple’s iPhone, Microsoft upped its ante with the launch of Windows Mobile 6.5 at ION Orchard last Friday. This came eight months after its announcement in the Mobile World Congress 2009.
The responses over the three-day roadshow seemed positive as crowds came forth at the booths to watch live demonstrations.
Those who had hands-on experiences were thrilled to see a revamped user interface and better web browsing capability.
Businessman Nelson Koh, 36, who was at the show said: “The new interface addresses issues like usability and connectivity, and I think it signifies a good beginning for Windows Mobile users.”
Besides promoting the overhauled operating system, Microsoft also introduced services equivalent to Apple’s App Store and MobileMe, called Windows Marketplace and My Phone. Windows Marketplace offers over 200 applications while My Phone provides data backup services for users.
“The applications from Windows Marketplace allow users to customise their mobile phones,” said Microsoft promoter, Simon Lim, 22.
He added, “If they do not like what they download, they get full refund when they return the application within 24 hours.”
However, some bystanders felt that Windows Mobile 6.5 was overhyped.
An unimpressed financial analyst Francis Ong, 27, thought that the newly launched services were merely an imitation of Apple’s innovation.
Ong said, “The features pale in comparison with iPhone, Android and Blackberry. For example, the number of applications available for download in Windows Marketplace is really a joke.”
On the other hand, another Microsoft promoter Charles Mah, 24, said that users should not be discouraged by the disparity of the number of applications between Windows Marketplace and Apple’s App Store.
He urged that the quality of an application is the real measure of a successful application.
Microsoft also held lucky draws where winners walked away with free Windows Mobile 6.5 equipped smartphones like HTC Touch 2.
Meanwhile, Singapore’s three major telcos Singtel, M1 and Starhub, were engaging in aggressive marketing campaigns.
SingTel was offering the brand new HTC Touch 2 for free when customers signed up for a specific mobile plan over the booth. Starhub and M1 was offering the HTC Touch 2 at a low price with a two-year contract.
“A new HTC Touch 2 and a new operating system at one dollar is a steal, I couldn’t resist signing up for another Starhub line,” said undergraduate Samuel Wong, 22.
The event also showcased new smartphone models from Asus, Acer, InQ, LG, Samsung and Sony Ericsson.
__________________________________________________________________
Two out of three telcos in Singapore to sell iPhone by end of the year
By Muhamad Farhan Bin Abdul Hamid
M1 has sealed a deal with Apple to bring in the iPhone to Singapore by the end of this year.
This breaks SingTel’s monopoly on the iPhone distribution rights in Singapore after 14 months. M1 has yet to reveal the iPhone’s pricing or its release date but “more information on pricing, tariffs and availability dates will be released in due course.”
M1 customers are relieved that the company is bringing in the iPhone. Azmawati Mohamed, 45, has been an M1 subscriber for nearly a decade and her loyalty has paid off.
She said: “If I make the switch to Singtel for the iPhone, I lose my loyalty benefits with M1 like bill rebates and free handphone vouchers. Now that M1 is going to sell the iPhone too, I don’t have to hop over to Singtel.”
The announcement has also left potential iPhone buyers in excitement as they foresaw an imminent price competition between the two telcos.
Polytechnic student Muhamad Fahmi, 20, who has been put off from buying an iPhone said: “I hope the phone will be cheaper now that two companies are selling it. If it’s affordable enough, I’m definitely buying it. ”
In response to M1’s successful deal with Apple, SingTel spokesperson Cheam Tze Hui said: “We review our price plans regularly to ensure they offer the best value to our customers and remain competitive in the market.”
To date, SingTel has sold over 100,000 iPhones and has won over customers who switched over from other providers under the Full Number Mobile Portability (FNMP) scheme in order to get their hands on the iPhone. The FNMP scheme allows customers to retain their mobile number when they switch providers.
In spite of SingTel’s stronghold on the sales of the sleek smartphone for over a year, sales are expected to be brisk for both telcos as demand for the latest iPhone model, the iPhone 3GS, is still strong. Long queues are still seen at SingTel’s Hello stores, after new stocks of iPhones were released on 7 October.
M1’s move comes as a major blow to Starhub, after losing the rights to broadcast major sporting events like the Barclays Premier League (BPL) and Formula One, to SingTel. Starhub spokesperson Michael Sim said that the company was “still interested to bring the iPhone” to its customers to retain its customers.
Starhub is still negotiating with Apple for the distribution rights to sell the iPhone, although it was reported in the Business Times that the company could not meet Apple’s demands which include committing to a high volume of unit sales and giving it a cut of the revenues as well.
