iPhone 4S Is Free with a Multiyear Agreement at China Unicom

For 386 yuan a month, China Unicom customers will get to take home a free iPhone 4S with a two year plan, the wireless operator announced today.

Unicom is China’s second-largest wireless services operator. The company has just kicked off a killer promotion that provides customers with a free iPhone 4S when they sign up for a multiyear commitment.

Starting next week, Chinese iPhone fans will be able to nab a free 16GB iPhone 4S on a two-year contract for 386 yuan (roughly 60 US dollars).

Those looking to get the 32GB model for free will have to sign a three year agreement that has them paying 286 yuan (roughly $46 US) per month.

Analyst Alen Lin with BNP Paribas Securities follows China Unicom closely. According to 9to5mac, he reportedly learned that the carrier lost a great deal of cash on their previous two-year agreements, and therefore was forced to bump up the plans to three years, to “have one additional year to recover the expense.”

Apple’s iPhone 4S is scheduled to debut in China on January 13th (next Friday).

Apple is launching the iPhone 4S in 21 additional territories next week, including Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Bolivia, Botswana, British Virgin Islands, Cameroon, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, China, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Grenada, Guam, Guinea Conakry, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritius, Niger, Senegal, St. Vincent and The Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos and Uganda.

Apple CEO, Tim Cook, personally noted that China is an important market for the Cupertino giant. Apple’s chief executive provided a statement earlier this week, saying “Customer response to our products in China has been off the charts. With the launch in China next week, iPhone 4S will be available in over 90 countries making this our fastest iPhone rollout ever.”