iPhone Without Exclusive Deal in Italy, Exception or Policy Change?

The Italy iPhone launch might signal a change in policy at Apple. As of now, Apple chose one carrier per country to which it gave exclusive rights to commercialize the iPhone. The idea is that carriers enter a bidding process during which they bid more royalties to Apple to get the coveted contract. Of course, there are many variables like the customer base and so on. So far AT&T has been fairly happy with the deal.

The Italian “La Repubblica” believes that this will come to an end soon and that Apple will switch to a more open model that involves several (or all) carriers. We can only speculate on this and our opinion is that the exclusivity tactic is a powerful demonstration for all carriers: they can make more money, even after sharing the subscription fees with Apple. However, this tactic has the drawback of locking out legions of customers trapped in their current contracts.

By becoming less exclusive, Apple will likely increase their total available market – which they need to continue to grow quickly.