China is a big deal, not just for Apple, but the most populated country on Earth also enjoys the largest mobile phone market as well. With the new iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c, Apple will for the first time have a device that is properly compatible with China Mobile, and a report out of China (translated) suggests why this is a very big deal for Apple:
Up to now, China Mobile iPhone users in the network has reached 42 million, which has exceeded the U.S. AT&T and Verizon combined sales of the two operators.
42 million iPhones is a lot. A lot a lot. While we can't exactly verify the accuracy of the report, it paints an interesting picture. Of that number, not a single one is an official, carrier subsidized unit. Every single one has been purchased elsewhere, and is running on, at best, an EDGE data network.
So, with officially supported iPhones for China Mobile finally, Apple stands to sell a lot of units. Perhaps not 40+ million, but even approaching a quarter of that would be considered an extremely positive result. Chinese smartphone owners want the iPhone, and now more than ever, Apple is going to be offering it to them.
Source: SinaTech via Unwired View
