Professional Documents
Culture Documents
iPhone?
Overview:
The Product:
What is iPhone?
What's new in this?
Background information:
When Apple wanted to redefine what a cellphone is, it didn’t phoned in yet
another clunky “smart-phone” with an Apple logo on it. For over a decade,
the incumbents in that industry were satisfied with existing form factors,
carrier relationships, revenue models and infinite small-minded product
differentiations. Unlike Nokia or Microsoft, Apple didn’t say, “There are too
many industry restrictions and technical hurdles for us to redefine this
category. It’s way too early.”
While the company announced the iPhone in January, few outside Apple
have actually seen the product in action. No one has been able to see
anything more than what Apple wanted the world to see.
Advertising & hype: When Apple CEO Steve Jobs removed an iPhone from
his pocket, officially unveiling the phone/media player/Internet device at
Macworld on Jan. 9, Apple did not follow up with a barrage of advertising.
Far from it: It ran a mysterious teaser ad during the Academy Awards
telecast, six weeks later. The "Hello" spot, featured dozens of clips from
classic movies and TV—actors and actresses answering phones—and ending
with a brief look at an iPhone, the word "Hello" and the line "Coming in
June."
What was amazing on launching the i-phone was the SECRECY involved
with the product. Before the official launching of the product , not a single
Apple-store displayed anything about the product, not even one, protected by
a glass box or display. NOTHING. It was just this huge MYSTERY which
intrigued people to talk more about it.
Within the ensuing information vacuum, the media and the blogosphere
engaged in an endless stream of speculation.
One of the great things I liked about the iphone campaign was, taking the
celebrities out of advertisements (besides the debut commercial) and
concentrating on the phone. Good strategy, seems like Apple knows its
target audience does not need to see Paris Hilton half naked to buy their
merchandise.
Mistake #2 – now – lowering the iPhone price even down to $199 – 66%
less than the original launch price, just 12 months after.
Will the iPhone price be $10 in December 2008?
Mistake #5 – absurd and jammed pricing of the iPhone and carrier monthly
fees in European countries.
Result: kills big slices of potential sales of the iPhone in Europe.
And making a big favour to Nokia and Motorola.
Despite its serious marketing blunders done by Apple, the iPhone has been a
huge success. Approximately total of 17.4 million iPhones had been sold
worldwide until December 27, 2008.
The launch of iphone, which was hailed by some analysts as the most
successful launch of a brand ever. While many analysts hailed the innovative
marketing strategy followed by Apple and also considered the iPhone to be a
category-defying product, others felt that iPhone was over hyped and said
that it was never good to over hype any products. Some analysts felt that
Apple had a long way to go to realize its ambition of becoming a major
player in the mobile phone market considering that the market had some
very dominant competitors who had decades of experience behind them.
Some analysts also viewed Apple's foray into this market as a defensive
strategy necessitated by the introduction of music phones by some well-
known mobile phone companies.
Critics said that the enormous amount of hype surrounding the iPhone had
led to the initial success of the brand. The main question, however, was
whether Apple would be able to match the initial hype with performance.
Some analysts opined that the iPhone might not live up to expectations.
Conclusion
Over-hyped or not, Apple deserved kudos for coming up with a product idea
like the iPhone and also implementing it successfully. The company had
made an aggressive entry into the mobile phone market and had managed to
attract the attention of the existing competitors.
Introduction of the iPhone would prompt its competitors to come out with
better phones in the future, thus offering wider choice and better products to
customers...