24 month contracts have arrived...

Maental2000

I noticed this on 3's website just there http://www.three.ie/shop/iphone-4-32gb-black-classic-flex-max-24.htm#

I believe Vodafone are going to be doing it too!

Why would anybody want to be locked into a 24 month contract?!! :mad:
I wish they'd piss off with their stupid English ideas!!!

ardmacha

They'll have a cheaper phone and people will go for it, without doing their sums, and then come on here a few months later saying that they want to get out of the contract.

AlmightyCushion

Seems to only be on the iPhone at the moment. Hopefully it stays that way.

long_b

ardmacha wrote: »

They'll have a cheaper phone and people will go for it, without doing their sums, and then come on here a few months later saying that they want to get out of the contract.

The only thing is, looks like 3 has just upped the contract term from 18 to 24 months without lowering the price. That sucks. Was considering this deal before but not now!

scudzilla

Beat ya to it

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056072979

Seems like we'll be like the UK very very soon, a lot sooner than i expected, over there it's all 24month contracts now, you're lucky to find an 18month one

Doom

Maental2000 wrote: »

I noticed this on 3's website just there http://www.three.ie/shop/iphone-4-32gb-black-classic-flex-max-24.htm#

I believe Vodafone are going to be doing it too!

Why would anybody want to be locked into a 24 month contract?!! :mad:
I wish they'd piss off with their stupid English ideas!!!

At least in the UK you get a PS3 free with the 24 month contract and a decent amount of mins and texts

Tom Dunne

Maental2000 wrote: »

I wish they'd piss off with their stupid English ideas!!!

They have been the norm in the US for quite a while now.

Nonoperational

O2 had 24 month iPhone contracts from day 1.

Mimikyu

This post has been deleted.

Ardent

24 month contracts in the current economic climate is a joke. You'd have to be mad to sign up to one.

kc66

I definitely would not sign up to anything over 12 months. I always get fed up with a phone within a year.

aster99

People will be attracted to getting the iphone cheap though, without thinking about things down the line

Maental2000

scudzilla wrote: »

Beat ya to it

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056072979

Seems like we'll be like the UK very very soon, a lot sooner than i expected, over there it's all 24month contracts now, you're lucky to find an 18month one

Exactly! That's the point I'm making...we may aswell forget all about 12 month contracts because they'll be nowhere to be seen soon enough :mad:

I hate 18 month contracts as it is, wouldn't sign up to it in a fit. DEFINITELY wouldn't entertain the notion of a 24 month contract.

Anybody notice how 3 got rid of it's 6 month contract under best of both a few months back and replaced it with a 12 month one? Stupid like....that was one of the unique features of BOB. Can't help but wonder if the 12 month BOB will be replaced by 18 month BOB soon enough...

krudler

gpf101 wrote: »

O2 had 24 month iPhone contracts from day 1.

In Ireland? no they dont. 18 is the max contract.

Crackity Jones

Maental2000 wrote: »

I noticed this on 3's website just there http://www.three.ie/shop/iphone-4-32gb-black-classic-flex-max-24.htm#

I believe Vodafone are going to be doing it too!

Why would anybody want to be locked into a 24 month contract?!! :mad:
I wish they'd piss off with their stupid English ideas!!!

Wow they have jacked up the price of the 18mth contract iPhone by €100. Glad I got in when I did with a €50 rebate too.

OwaynOTT

Crazy idea and its not even that much cheaper, just seventy odd quid, it should be free. You'd never catch me signing up to one.
Now I wonder if the tab will come on one...

Walkman

http://www.three.ie/shop/iphone-4-16gb-black-classic-flex-max-24.htm

Prices have been changed on their website

ingen

vodafone now have started selling phones on 24 month contract,

blackberry torch €229.99 on 24 month contract....


blackberry pearl 9105 €60 on 24 month contract..........

funny thing is they are the same price on an 18month contract!

KrisW

Unlike other manufacturers, Apple do not discount their handset prices to network operators.

So, the reason you're locked into 24 months is that the network is subsidising your "cheap" iPhone by about €400. Don't give out to O2 or Vodafone; direct your complaints towards Cupertino, California.

I'm unsure about the economics of iPhone owners for the networks - they use very little voice, consume huge amounts of data that the operator can't charge them for, and then feck off to another network to get a better price on the next iPhone when it comes out. They want any other alternative, which is why Android handsets are being pushed so hard right now.

gbee

KrisW wrote: »

I'm unsure about the economics of iPhone owners for the networks - they use very little voice, consume huge amounts of data that the operator can't charge them for, and then feck off to another network to get a better price on the next iPhone when it comes out.

Sure, it was silly for O2 to have 18 month contracts and dead ends when we were to get an annual iPhone replacement.

They also offered no incentives to renew or upgrade even when those 18 months had elapsed. I had a 'silver' upgrade which should have equated to a €60 iPhone and a 24 month contract continuance.

But no they wanted €250 plus the continuance [actually a NEW contract]. And anyone off the street could walk into an O2 store and get the same deal, they could not understand why I was upset as they were 'effectively' NOT giving me my silver upgrade on the iP4 ~ but no matter as a NEW customer to 3 I got a FREE iP4 + 24months.

Now, I believe a MAJOR issue with ALL networks is this 'new customers only' policy, as I've outlined above, it was more cost effective for me to close O2 and open 3. In two years time I'll close 3 and move to Vodafone for the iP6's new customer offers.

KrisW

The thing is, when you take an iPhone on a 18 month contract you have also been given a loan of at least €200 by the operator to purchase the handset. You could try to pay it back over 12 months, but that would make the plan look very expensive, so they don't offer it.

When the next iPhone comes out, 12 months later, you still owe €60 on the one you bought last year. That's why they won't give you the same deal as someone coming in off the street: that customer doesn't owe them money, but you still do.

I think the iPhone has done O2 no favours at all - the customers it got with it are not sticking, because they didn't join O2 for any reason apart from O2 being the only way to get their Apple product; plus, the heavy subsidy and high data use makes it hard for them to make any money back, so there's no profit to give the customer a good follow-up deals, which ultimately hurts the operator.

One of the other effects of this I noticed is that O2 seem to be cross-subsidising iPhone buyers by not offering good deals to customers on other handsets. An iPhone 4 costs €250 on O2 billpay, but a Nokia C7 (a FAR cheaper handset) is €260; when I looked to upgrade my old phone, I was quoted €270 for a Nokia N8: €20 MORE over the price of an iPhone 4 - this was insane, when the Nokia, SIM-free, was €200 LESS than the iPhone. (It's now €99, by the way, which is a much better deal)

gbee

KrisW wrote: »

When the next iPhone comes out, 12 months later, you still owe €60 on the one you bought last year. That's why they won't give you the same deal as someone coming in off the street: that customer doesn't owe them money, but you still do.

In my post, I was 24months and six month out of contract so they got six month EXTRA from me.

KrisW

Sorry, didn't mean you specifically... meant it as in "one is"...

Analysis of their churn-rate obviously shows that it's more cost-effective to spend money luring new customers than give it to existing ones. Many customers stay because it's less hassle, or have had bad experiences with a competitor. Also, not everyone wants to upgrade their handset as soon as a new one comes out although smartphone users, and particularly iPhone users, are more magpie-like than others.

What they're doing is no different to Sky's "free sports for 6 months.... then we squeeze you" offer, or a car insurer's "lowest quote guaranteed... this year" or the free gift with the magazine subscription. Get you in, and hope that inertia will keep you there.

Regarding iPhone specifically, there's an interesting take on it, from a network operator's perspective here:

You could compare the operators’ attitude towards the iPhone's data consumption with a restaurant owner that has a "all you can eat for 10 Euro” buffet and that is proudest of the customers that eat the most!

If I were a network operator, I'd look at data usage by iPhone customers, and the ones who used the least would be selected for "personal" upgrades. High users would get nothing, in the hope they get disaffected and go to one of my competitors. It's the only strategy that will generate money...