14 DAY TRIAL // Apple has recently announced that Orange, the leading wireless carrier in France, will be the exclusive carrier in this country to support the iPhone's release. The device will be out on the market on the 29th of November.
It sure took Apple some time until they finally decided to officially announce their deal with Orange. The reason for it taking so long mostly rests in the legislation problems that demanded from carriers to unlock handsets after six months, at the users' request. Given the great extent of Apple's trouble to keep the iPhone locked, it's rather surprising to see that they have given in to allow the sale of unlocked handsets.
Now everyone will go to France to buy their own free iPhone version without having to pay a great deal of money to hackers. Tourism might even flourish on this occasion, which could be a side effect of this release.
Orange France seems to be quite happy with reaching the end of negotiations with Apple on the terms of their phone's release. "The iPhone is a marvelous product and will change how people think about mobile. I'm delighted that it is launching in France through Orange, and I'm sure that our customers share my excitement. Our partnership with Apple is a natural fit because we are two global brands who share the same values of simplicity and innovation. It's going to be a very merry Christmas for Orange customers all over the country!", said Didier Lombard, CEO, France Telecom.
It's almost too good to be true. One thing that leaves a shadow of doubt over the iPhone's release in France is the fact that a price for the unlocked version has not been revealed yet. The locked version, however, will be available for USD 400, starting with November 29.