Apple's iPhone revenue has plunged in
the December quarter, and the company is ready to make some changes.
According to CEO Tim Cook, Apple will reduce prices
of the iPhone in markets where local currencies have weakened against the
dollar.
As we’ve gotten into January and assessed the
macroeconomic condition in some of those markets, we’ve decided to go back to
more commensurate with what our local prices were a year ago in hopes of
helping the sales in those areas,” Cook told Reuters (via The Next Web).
If you've never bought an iPhone outside of the
U.S., you may not be aware of just how staggering the price difference is. I've
been pointing it out over and over and over — it's
hard to justify spending $1,760 for a maxed-out iPhone XS (UK pricing at
launch) when the exact same model costs $1,349 in the U.S. And it's even harder
in a country like Hungary, where the price is even higher and the average
customer's purchasing power is far lower than in the U.S.
Yes, a part of the price difference is in taxes, and
yes, the U.S. pricing does not reflect local taxes, and yes, Apple has
additional distribution costs in markets other than the U.S. But the simple
truth is that iPhone prices are too high for many international buyers, and
Apple definitely can do something about it. Now, we've simply reached the point
where the company is willing to address the issue.
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