Apple has unprecedented support of mobile carriers in quite a number of markets around the world. Many carriers in major markets are fine with the conditions that Apple imposes for them if they want to carry its iPhone, but there’s still a sizable majority that doesn’t agree with Apple. The company is reportedly missing out on as many as 2.8 billion new prospective customers because many carriers, with majority based in Asia, refuse to accept Apple’s conditions. Right now, some 240 carriers officially offer the iPhone to their customers, but those who are not on board have a huge amount of subscribers that are based in Japan, India, Russia, China, etc.
To put things in perspective, Samsung’s devices are carried by some 800 carriers around the world, because the Korean manufacturer doesn’t have such strict conditions. This is what’s eating in to Apple’s global market share, despite the fact that roughly 500 have the technical capacity to support the iPhone in the first place. Most of these carriers are based in markets that need lower priced phones, where majority of the subscribers are prepaid, a smartphone priced over $600 isn’t within everyone’s reach. Therefore its hard for carriers to meet Apple’s demands, which include a minimum number of sales and a price that currently sits at $600, that too without subsidies. It is believed that Apple’s cheaper iPhone, which will be aimed towards such markets, will greatly help the company expand its influence and gain more market share. Though it is not known when exactly these low cost iPhones will be released.
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