Apple Makes $831 On Each AT&T iPhone

Ponca City, We Love You writes "The NYTimes reports that Gene Munster, an analyst at Piper Jaffray, has studied Apple's financial statements and come to the conclusion that AT&T is paying Apple $18 a month, on average, for each iPhone sold by Apple and activated on AT&T's network — up to $432 over a two-year contract. This shows how much incentive Apple has to maintain its exclusive deal with AT&T rather than to sell unlocked phones or cut deals with multiple carriers. Last week Apple disclosed that 250,000 iPhones had been purchased but not registered with ATT that Apple thinks are being unlocked so Apple has now taken action to curb unauthorized resellers by limiting sales of the iPhone to two per customer and requiring that purchases must now be made with a credit or debit card — cash will not be accepted." The latter article links to a US Treasury page explaining the incorrectness of the widely-held belief that cash cannot be refused for any transaction.

Re:that math is wrong

[attemptedgoalie]

iPhones are magic, and you know it. :-)

Ok, you're right. That is, unless Apple is using Oompa Loompas to make them. Then, they might be free. The materials are all derived from recycling old Newtons and glued together with the tears of Apple fanatics upset about the $200 price drop.

Re:not accepting cash?!?!

[Muffinmasher]

But nowhere on there does it say "Good for all iPhones, public and private".

Re:Freeing the Hardware

[KDR_11k]

It didn't strike me until the second to last sentence that Apple and Orange seem strangely fitting together.

Re:Good bye Apple

[nagora]

Run to Microsoft's waiting arms, I'm sure they've got nothing but the best planned.

Yes, because only Apple and Microsoft make mobile phones.

TWW

Liar

[planetfinder]

Don't let the door hit your ass on the way out.

Someone has to say it ...

[lotsofsand]

You're clearly comparing Apples and Oranges here.

Cash vs Credit

[throatmonster]

I still do almost all my purchasing with cash. I get it from ATMs, but then nobody really knows where I spend that money. That means my wife can't track where I've been, except the the nearest ATM.

Re:that math is wrong

[Anonymous Coward]

If oompa loompa's are 8 year old chinese kids.

Darn them

[whitehatlurker]

It's tough to start conspiracy rumours when they state up front that they won't take cash because they're trying to track the people who purchase their phones. I prefer it when they try to hide what they're doing to reduce their customers' privacy. It's more challenging ...

Re:that math is wrong

[GaryPatterson]

(Irritating teenager in an Apple store grasps for iPhone, bugs parents and then just takes one from the stand.)
(Lights flash, teenager freezes mid-grasp.)
(A group of small, odd men enter from a previously unnoticed doorway under the iMac stand.)

Oompa Loompa doopity do
I've got an iPhone here for you.
Oompa Loompa doopity day
Sign here and here and take it away.

What do you get when you follow a craze?
Buying everything to the end of your days.
What do you do when you're nose-deep in debt?
You will pay all your wages, that's a certain bet.

I don't like the look of it.

Oompa Loompa doopity dah
If you are cautious you will go far.
You can live in happiness too
Without credit like the Oompa Loompas doopity do!

(Irritating teenager is sucked down a pipe, parents watch in horror and are led away by an Oompa Loompa)

Re:that math is wrong

[loudambiance]

"Wait a second, this introduces an interesting chicken and egg problem. If the phones are made from the tears of those who are upset about the price drop, what are the phones those original zealots overpaid for glued together with?"

The tears of those same fanboys from all the leopard delays of course

Call me an asshole / mod me down as flamebait but

[Monoliath]

...so sorry.

Fuck Apple

This is more horrendous bullshit, from a hardware manufacturer trying to hold it's consumers / customers hostage...to the world's shittiest telco.

There is NO device that has functionality SO GREAT...that would make me jump through hoops such as this nonsense.

When are people going to wake up?

Re:that math is wrong

[that this is not und]

But unless someone drops us an Apple spreadsheet, this is the best its gonna get.

Can OpenOffice even open a Claris Works spreadsheet??