Editor’s Note: The following article is reprinted from Macworld UK. Visit Macworld U.K.’s blog page for the latest Mac news from across the Atlantic.
Germany’s T-Mobile generated a wave of media attention with its decision to subsidize the purchase price of the iPhone in a new €99 (US$155) deal, announced last week, but Apple’s U.K. partner, O2, has no immediate plan to emulate the discount.
T-Mobile’s plan has been seen as predicated by one of two reasons: to stimulate flagging sales of the device in Germany, or to clear stock from the network’s channel, pending the coming release of a 3G-supporting model of the device.
Apple’s German iPhone network partner has been selling the 8GB model of iPhone for €399, but reduced the cost of that model to €99 late last week.
O2 has not chosen to emulate T-Mobile’s move, at least, not yet. An O2 spokesperson told Macworld UK: “We regularly examine all of our offerings to ensure they remain competitive and meet customer demands. We currently have no updates regarding iPhone pricing.”
While this response leaves the door open to future price cuts on the part of Apple’s UK network partner, it does mean there’s no immediate price discount plan to be announced.