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Rogers Will Bring Apple iPhone to Canada Apr 29, 2008 "We have a deal with Apple to bring the iPhone to Canada later this year," Rogers said. "We can't tell you any more about it right now, but stay tuned. This is just one of the many exciting wireless, cable and Internet innovations that you'll hear from Rogers over the coming months." The Shock FactorThough the iPhone delivers a good user experience, the ultimate success of Apple's red-hot handset in Canada will be entirely dependent on the data plan Rogers intends to offer for the device, said Brownlee Thomas, a Montreal-based Forrester Research principal analyst. "Canada has been very renown for not knowing what 'unlimited' really means," Thomas said. "It does suggest a radical shift in how Rogers will price mobile data plans, because right now they are very expensive." "There'll be a shock factor unless they reduce the cost," Thomas observed. On the other hand, "It's really hard to imagine that Rogers would erode its revenues so radically by changing their model for mobile data," she said. "Apple expects to get a share of Rogers' mobile data revenue" if the iPhone maker's exclusive agreement with AT&T in the U.S. is any indication, Thomas added. As Canada's only GSM (Global System for Mobile communications) network operator, Rogers will effectively have a national exclusive, given that the iPhone is a GSM-only device, Thomas noted. Canada's other major wireless operators, Bell Mobility and Telus, employ the rival CDMA (code division multiple access) standard on their networks. If Rogers does move to lower data-subscription rates by introducing an unlimited plan, Thomas expects it would immediately be copied by the carrier's Canadian rivals. "They would have no choice, she said. "This will push Bell and Telus to adjust their data plans, and perhaps even introduce a combined 'voice-and-data experience'" similar to what Sprint now offers in the U.S. for $99 per month. |
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