China Unicom passes 100,000 reservations for Apple's iPhone 5s, 5c
China Unicom announced that more than 100,000 reservations have been taken for Apple's soon-to-be-released iPhone 5s and 5c, even though the carrier has yet to announce its plans for device subsidies.
China Unicom's revelation, which arrives less than a week after the public debut of the iPhone 5s and 5c, is the first sign of pre-order figures for the new handsets from any of Apple's launch partners. The numbers come despite the fact that the the carrier has still not revealed any pricing information, though analysts told Bloomberg that subsidies are expected to shrink compared to those offered for the iPhone 5.
"China Unicom and China Telecom are more rational on price competition," wrote Jeffries analyst Cynthia Meng, adding that the carriers are "balancing between quantity and quality of new 3G subscriber development." Fellow analyst Eva Yip of Sun Hung Kai Financial Ltd. in Hong Kong estimated the iPhone 5s subsidies from China Telecom would be about 15 percent lower than those for the iPhone 5.
The effect of the iPhone on Chinese carriers' profitability has been dramatic, as China Telecom's first half of 2013 financial results received a significant lift thanks to increases in revenue from 3G data due to the popular smartphones.
The second- and third-largest wireless carriers in China ? China Unicom and China Telecom ? will begin offering the iPhone 5s and 5c on Friday, Sept. 20th, marking the first time that the iPhone has been available to China's 1.4 billion consumers on its global launch day. A deal with market leader China Mobile to gain access to its 740 million customers is expected but has not yet been announced.
China Unicom's revelation, which arrives less than a week after the public debut of the iPhone 5s and 5c, is the first sign of pre-order figures for the new handsets from any of Apple's launch partners. The numbers come despite the fact that the the carrier has still not revealed any pricing information, though analysts told Bloomberg that subsidies are expected to shrink compared to those offered for the iPhone 5.
"China Unicom and China Telecom are more rational on price competition," wrote Jeffries analyst Cynthia Meng, adding that the carriers are "balancing between quantity and quality of new 3G subscriber development." Fellow analyst Eva Yip of Sun Hung Kai Financial Ltd. in Hong Kong estimated the iPhone 5s subsidies from China Telecom would be about 15 percent lower than those for the iPhone 5.
The effect of the iPhone on Chinese carriers' profitability has been dramatic, as China Telecom's first half of 2013 financial results received a significant lift thanks to increases in revenue from 3G data due to the popular smartphones.
The second- and third-largest wireless carriers in China ? China Unicom and China Telecom ? will begin offering the iPhone 5s and 5c on Friday, Sept. 20th, marking the first time that the iPhone has been available to China's 1.4 billion consumers on its global launch day. A deal with market leader China Mobile to gain access to its 740 million customers is expected but has not yet been announced.
Comments
I'd hardly call an $8 drop "shooting back up" which in itself tells you how useful stock price predictions are on this forum.
100k is chump change from a Chinese market perspective.
Out of what is it now? 1.35 billion and counting? JK
I'd hardly call an $8 drop "shooting back up" which in itself tells you how useful stock price predictions are on this forum.
100k is chump change from a Chinese market perspective.
Yeop it's only the beginning.
Now watch as Apple's shares shoot back up. And all those who sold there shares are going to want to buy them back ..
I'm watching, I'm watching, except they are not shooting back up, rather they are shooting... down! AAPL $454
And how many were gold :-D
Out of the 100k I wonder how many were 5s (vast majority I expect) and how many were 5c.
And how many were gold :-D
Gold is gooood!
I'd hardly call an $8 drop "shooting back up" which in itself tells you how useful stock price predictions are on this forum.
100k is chump change from a Chinese market perspective.
That's a 100,000 people who have not seen the phone and don't know what it's going to cost them, but have ordered it anyway.
Now watch as Apple's shares shoot back up. And all those who sold there shares are going to want to buy them back ..
Not quite. Now down $11.
Ugh ...
They may not know exact price but they know what the upper limit is.
Wall Street is totally irrational when it comes to Apple. The P/E multiple is absurdly low.
As for 100 K, that's actually an impressive number to order a phone sight unseen and without even knowing the price. Keep in mind that a couple million preorders over opening weekend is a great number - but that's global. 100 K from a single carrier in a short time is quite reasonable.
"Just days before the iPhone 5 is set to go on sale in China, the nation's second largest carrier announced on Monday that preorders for the device have reached over 300,000 units less than a week after initiating reservations.
In a post to its official Sina Weibo microblog (via MacWorld), China Unicom said pre-sale orders for Apple's newest handset now stand at over 300,000, meaning the telecom added some 200,000 reservations to the 100,000 recorded a day after reservations went live. "
In even older previous news (Source AI)
"Apple's iPhone 4S launches on China Telecom, drawing 200K preorders"
So in the grand scheme of things 100K _is_ not a number to be getting excited about or to be expecting any shoot up in stock price.
A preorder without knowing the price is not relevant, preorders can be cancelled at any time.
Not quite. Now down $11.
great time to buy then..
5S does not even start pre order in china until the 17th so these numbers are just for the 5C. CHU sold 200K the first weekend with the 5 last year so 100K this year for just there lessor model is not bad. When apple releases actual numbers next Monday which will include the 5s I expect all the trolls will slither away
Are you saying the article is incorrect? The definition of a pre-order is to order a device not yet available, why should the 17th make a difference. This is a preorder through China Unicom not Apple.
"China Unicom announced that more than 100,000 reservations have been taken for Apple's soon-to-be-released iPhone 5s and 5c"
What I am saying is that all I have seen is the 5S is not available for pre order in China until the 17th. If that has changed then I stand corrected. Otherwise something does not add up.
http://************/2013/09/13/china-apple-stores-to-start-taking-iphone-5s-5c-reservations-sept-17-pickup-sept-20/
Now watch as Apple's shares shoot back up. And all those who sold there shares are going to want to buy them back ..
I'd hardly call an $8 drop "shooting back up" which in itself tells you how useful stock price predictions are on this forum.
100k is chump change from a Chinese market perspective.
Do you have any trouble reading? There's no price info, no contract info, nothing... And already 100.000 reservations.
What I am saying is that all I have seen is the 5S is not available for pre order in China until the 17th. If that has changed then I stand corrected. Otherwise something does not add up.
http://************/2013/09/13/china-apple-stores-to-start-taking-iphone-5s-5c-reservations-sept-17-pickup-sept-20/
If China Unicom can allow preorder of 5C with no price defined yet why not 5s. It's just a pre-order within their system.
Do you have any trouble reading? There's no price info, no contract info, nothing... And already 100.000 reservations.
Big deal, you can cancel a pre-order at any time.