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Dec 04, 07 - 11:29 am Comment from: silverhawk

Hopefully T-Mobile will seek damages.

Dec 04, 07 - 11:51 am Comment from: mike_in_helsinki

Sehr Gut.

Dec 04, 07 - 12:03 pm Comment from: MacSheikh

Sounds like a good news/bad news kind of thing to me.

And bloody slow loading made me lose the first post! Dammit!

Dec 04, 07 - 12:17 pm Comment from: shiftOpt k

So… what does Apple have to say about, "The company … said that after customers' contracts expire, it will unlock their iPhone at no charge"?

Dec 04, 07 - 12:30 pm Comment from: MCCFR

Poor Vodafone!

Possibly the largest mobile network in the world in terms of subscribers shut out of selling iPhone either in its home market (UK) or any of its key foreign markets, so - as a result - forced to fight petty little battles in court to try and hold back the tide.

As I've said before, Vodafone paid handsomely (extravagantly, in all truth) to acquire Mannesmann which it then transformed into Vodafone D2 (breaking its agreement to maintain the Mannesmann brand in the process); the premium was effectively because no "foreign" company had ever acquired a German industrial giant at any point since the war (with the possible exception of GM's re-acquisition of Adam Opel AG once the shooting was over).

Vodafone was then forced (by the UK regulators) to dispose of Orange which Mannesmann had only just acquired and was only a UK network at the time.

So, having paid through the nose, Vodafone sold France Telecom the network that will now sell the iPhone in France and – having staked everything on 3G – the company is also in danger of being screwed in the ass by a phone that wouldn't recognise a UMTS network if it was being around the head by a 3G radio mast.

I never cease to be amazed by the Zen-like interconnectedness of all events in the Universe, particularly the events which come along to correct the hubris which accumulates in the arrogant – you would have thought the CEO of Vodafone would have learnt from the trials of Michael Dell or Steve Ballmer (Dances With Monkeys™), but he decided to roll the dice instead; judging from the rumours of how Vodafone dealt with the termination of its agreements with Carphone Warehouse (apparently the equivalent of being dumped by your fiancée by SMS), karma is obviously going to play a part in his life.

Moo said the cow!

Is it true that Verizon CEO and Bill Gates are friends and that is why Verizon passed on the iPhone exclusive?

Dec 04, 07 - 12:45 pm Comment from: silverwarloc

@MCCFR

schadenfreud...I love this word.

so what happens to the pepole who bought over the last month???

Dec 04, 07 - 01:33 pm Comment from: twilightmoon

Despite what some others think, this a HUGE win for consumers.

Having iPhone tied to one carrier will FORCE the other carriers to come up with better phones to compete. Vodaphone won't get to ride Apple's coat tails for free hiding behind judges robes and bad laws.

When other carriers lose their customers to the iPhone they will DEMAND other handset makers to create better, more compelling hardware. This was never the case before the iPhone, instead they crippled and micromanaged what the manufacturers could do with their phones.

It will be a long time before other manufacturers come out with anything remotely similar to the iPhone in terms of usability, but they will have to or they'll fall by the wayside. This ruling will help accelerate that process.

Why do people insist on writing "Vodaphone"?

Rui: Why do people insist on writing "Vodaphone"?

iPhone contamination.

Dec 04, 07 - 02:28 pm Comment from: The Other Steve

So, what will AT&T;and Apple allow us customers in the U.S. to do with our iPhone when our 2-year contract expires? Will our 2-year-old iPhone be opened?
I don't plan to switch, but I would like to see AT&T;offer me an incentive to stay.

Dec 04, 07 - 02:34 pm Comment from: ken1w

> Having iPhone tied to one carrier will FORCE the other carriers to come up with better phones to compete. Vodaphone won't get to ride Apple's coat tails for free hiding behind judges robes and bad laws.

@ twilightmoon

While I agree with you, I don't think too many customers were going to pay 999 euros for the officially unlocked iPhone. The bigger concern are the unofficially unlocked iPhones. A significant percentage of iPhones being sold are then resold as unlocked iPhones.

I couldn't have said it better myself.

No, I mean I couldn't.

btw
Micros**t sucks.

Dec 04, 07 - 10:00 pm Comment from: TheConfuzed1

The Other Steve--

The iPhone is your incentive to stay. If they unlock it for you, that incentive goes away, so don't hold your breath.

you have ere