Articles by Dieter Bohn
The Wall Street Journal has an article up today saying the iPhone uses more data than your average smartphone and suggesting:
In the short term, carriers should abandon unlimited data pricing plans. Both AT&T and Verizon Wireless already charge extra for heavy users with wirelessly connected laptops. They will have to contemplate similar strategies for smartphone users.
Short gloss — yes, the iPhone will strain AT&T’s network and the profit on the iPhone plan is probably a bit less on a per-user basis than it is on, say, a WinMo phone. However, ARPU is “average revenue per user”, and the iPhone makes AT&T’s ARPU look high and that’s still what people pay attention to. (And even with reduced profit, AT&T still makes WAY more ARPU and profit per-user with the iPhone than they do off a feature phone.)
As for abandoning unlimited data: like the cable companies, every provider wants to but nobody has figured out a way to do it that doesn’t make end users livid. So, we doubt that AT&T will pull that particular trigger.
Finally, network upgrades aren’t just about giving users speed and better experiences with fewer dropped calls and the like — they’re also about the network lowering their per user cost, and that’s certainly in AT&T’s best interests as well.
So you’re right, WSJ, that the iPhone cuts into some of AT&T’s profit levels, but not so much that it’s going to be a problem. There’s a reason they’re so desperate to re-up their contract with Apple.
[Via Gizmodo]
Each week we bring you the best of SPE. This week, The iPhone Blog brings you a gigantic Birthday Bash Contest with a grand prize of a Factory Unlocked iPhone 3G done up, Colorware-style. Crackberry.com had the WES 2009 Conference covered six ways from Sunday, too. Meanwhile, Nokia Experts stood out as the single best place to find out all there is know about the just-released Nokia E71x. There’s much more, so read on!
Each week we break down the best of the Smartphone Experts Network for your reading pleasure. It’s possible you caught every single one of the 191 posts we published across our network this week, but we won’t hold everybody to that. Device leaks, device announcements, and site contests all await you here – so read on!
We’re pretty sure that if you’re reading this, you’re the sort who likes exclusive, breaking details on Smartphones. We had that aplenty this week. Nokia Experts got the full skinny on the AT&T Nokia E71x in the form of PDF guides and a confirmation of a May 4th release. PreCentral.net scored an internal head-to-head between the iPhone and the Palm Pre. CrackBerry.com saw yet another Storm OS leak.
We’re also pretty sure you like free stuff. So you’ll want to check out the What Would You Do for a Palm Pre Giveaway. We’re also incredibly proud that CrackBerry.com reached – wait for it – One Million Members! They’ll be tossing out celebratory gifts to them this week. WMExperts will be giving away a phone (check there on Monday). Also, did you know that The iPhone Blog is approaching their 1 year anniversary in a couple weeks? Expect some fun to happen there soon, too!
Much more more happened in the smartphone world, so as usual, we bring you our "Best of SPE roundup." Come take a look at what’s news!
What else is there to say? Through the App Store, we all have purchased one billion apps from developers and Apple. From productivity to games to Twitter Clients to Cat Twitter Clients to, yes, body function emulators. Crazy thing is, we would have bought even more if Apple would have rejected so many. There are over 35,000 apps in the store now, if you didn’t know, another towering achievement.
So kudos to you, Apple, for finally getting mobile apps right. Kudos to you, developers, for churning out so much great stuff. And finally, kudos to you, iPhone user, for laying down your hard-earned and showing the world that people will pay good money for good software if they’re just given the chance.
Each week we bring you the best of what’s happening in the smartphone world in our “Best of SPE roundup.” Come take a look at what’s news!
Do you have post-CTIA-syndrome? Feel like all the hot new smartphone news happened two weeks ago and not much has happened since? Wondering if you have the strength to make it through another day without a pithy overview of everything that happened in the smartphone world last week? Easter feast have you feeling too lazy to do anything but peruse enough smartphone news to fill out a short novella?
Fret not, our best of SPE news roundup has you covered. Get clicking!
Join Dieter, Kevin, Rene, and Phil as they discuss CTIA and the other big news coming out of the smartphone world in the past few weeks.
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