$1.5m Worth Illegal Russian iPhones Industry
It seems that Apple did have a valid concern when it was addressing the iPhone unlocking and resales problem last week. Biggest Russian commercial daily Kommersant recently ran a story on the Russian underground iPhone sales, which estimated the industry is worth approximately USD $1.5 million in Russia alone.
Apple iPhone is currently locked to American AT&T provider and cannot be used elsewhere without undergoing an “unlock” procedure, allowing any sim card to be used with the device. And while the sales of individual black market retailers are not big, they do amount to significant potential revenue losses for Apple and its future partners in territories where the iPhone is not yet available (anywhere apart of the USA, basically).
“I personally sell around 30 devices a month,” said Ivan, one of the black market retailers. “We buy them for 20,000 Rubles (USD $810) and sell for 27,000 Rubles (USD $1,100)“.
But unlocked iPhones don’t end up only on the black market, as a number of “legit” mobile phone retailers are offering the device in their stores. For example major mobile phones retailer Svyaz’-Telecom offers unlocked iPhones on its site for 41,000 Rubles (USD $1,660 = more than 4x American retail price), although its representative blamed a supplier on this. “We don’t import anything ourselves. There is always a doubt about the importer of the phone and whether he was aware of legality and certification of the handset on Russian market,” said its spokesperson.
At the same time, Russian Apple distributor is not too much worried about the situation. “In Russia there is a limited number of customers willing to buy the newest technological innovations for triple the price. We estimate that number at 10,000 people,” said Evgenij Bootman, Apple IMC Russia director. But the director of “Svyaznoj” phone retailers chain believes that there are over 300,000 people in Russia that are willing to pay “double or more of the price” for the iPhone.
And the situation likely will not change anytime soon — according to Russian mobile carriers Vympelkom, Euroset, and Megafon, they were in contact with Apple regarding iPhone’s distribution but the talks were not successful, while a Russian iTunes version does not exist at all, further complicating the matters related to Russian iPhone launch.
Apple Europe spokesperson had no comments on the report or potential iPhone launch date in Russia, “we don’t announce such events,” he said.
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