O2 rubs salt in the wounds of Irish consumer with Paddy Tax version 2
I am totally disgusted by O2’s behaviour with this iPhone price reduction in the UK, I put a call in again and got the usual no comment bullshit.
I have issued the below press release this evening to all Irish press offices.
Press-release
O2 rubs salt in the wounds of Irish consumer with Paddy Tax version 2
Irish company Cubic Telecom today expressed Shock and outrage at O2, s decision to reduce the price of the iPhone in the UK by £100 with no announcement for Ireland.
“This is again of example of a totally two tiered structure that reigns between Ireland and the UK on the telecoms front.The £100 reduction, which will apply to the 8GB device on all O2 iPhone tariffs, will take place tomorrow (Wednesday) and will run until 1 June. It follows T-Mobile’s decision to reduce the price of the handset from £315 to £78 in Germany.
An entry level iPhone is now £169 (€209) in the UK and remains €399 in Ireland. O2 have agreed to refund in voucher form £100 credit to all iPhone purchasers in the UK who purchased at the earlier price.
O2 Ireland have no comment to make on the matter and with the now obvious gaps between Ireland and the UK Cubic’s founder Pat Phelan is imploring iPhone fans to take a wait and see attitude.
Cubic Telecom is a Cork based telecoms company which was started to give people better and fairer pricing as they roam around the globe.
Their flagship product is MaxRoam, a sim card that allows users to pay considerably less for making and receiving calls as they travel around the world.
Pat Phelan
President: Cubic Telecom ltd
+353872049121
+353214250658
I’d be interested to see what Press your release gets man. Good luck.
Really is shocking.. I’m hoping to get over to Ireland sometime soon for a Mobile Monday. See if we can liaise?
Last time I checked, Ireland was not a part of the UK, no?
I don’t understand the uproar. Other countries have got the full price iPhones too.
Keep up the pressure Pat
Typical. So much for this EU competition crap:
http://www.multilingualblog.com/
Btw: Are there any reliable figures on how the iPhone sales via O2 in Ireland are faring since launch?
Good man Pat,pity o2 won’t reply to you.They must have been told to shut up and don’t talk to anyone as they have a knack of insulting people..
You have plenty of people out there who are holding off from buying the iPhone here,maybe with the drop of price in England,it might work out cheaper to buy it there.Good business sense to see the money leave the country especially as we’re rolling in it here..
Pisses my off that they actually think that we’re as thick as shite and don’t shop around.
Sorry Project but your comment is lost on me as Pat is doing his best to highlight the fact that the product is available at a different and much lower price from the same supplier through same retail outlets as we have here in Ireland..
How have sales of the iPhone been going in Ireland. I’ll admit I bought one, I just assumed that O2 Ireland were not going to change the prices or tariffs, looks like I was right, though that doesnt feel good.
I quick poll of my e-mail address book (200 members in Ireland): no-one has bought one.
My contacts tell me that O2 Ireland have been giving them away to employees and partners (internal & external). I wonder if this is to get the sales figures up. Does this count as a sale? ……..
If o2 have been given iPhones away it only benefits them to the fact that these people will have to use the o2 network at some stage unless of course they have listened to Pat and changed network..
As for actual sales I don’t think o2 are concerned as long as they get the highly overcharged monthly income from those above..
Pity they don’t use their heads and maybe pass on the same free phone deals through the o2 outlets to the everyday punter,still make money and create positive feedback rather than all the negative they have brought upon themselves ..
Here’s the response:
http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/0416/iphone.html
Of course “Footfall” doubled,I won’t have expected anything else,but that doesn’t mean shit if they don’t buy..2,4,6,8 people going into a shop won’t pay the rent if they don’t put purchase,and that was the question o2 “how many purchased”,not looked at,not picked up and checked it out,but put hard cash in your till.I would say well below your expected target..what a shame
Seems like the iPhone is a patchy success in Europe:
http://venturebeat.com/2008/04/10/the-iphone-in-europe-a-patchy-success/