Reuters: Cheaper iPhone story withdrawn after 'substantial changes' to China report

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2014
Rumors of a more affordable iPhone for emerging markets took an interesting turn Friday, as the major news organization Reuters opted to rescind a story originally filed, based on comments allegedly made by Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller.

Reuters issued an update Friday morning informing readers that it had withdrawn the story, which featured the headline "Apple exec dismisses cheaper iPhone as a market share grab ??report." It was based on a report from the Shanghai Evening News, but that original story was later updated with "substantial changes to its content," which prompted the significant retraction.

AppleInsider also cited the same story on Thursday, noting that Schiller allegedly told the newspaper that Apple is not interested in making a "cheap," low-profit iPhone. The Next Web had reported that it confirmed with Apple that Schiller's comments came from an "official interview," as did the report from Reuters, which is now rescinded.

It's unclear exactly what the "substantial changes" made to the story are. As of Friday morning, the original story remains hosted at jfdaily.com, claiming that Schiller said Apple will not develop "cheap smartphones."

iPhone 5


The original Chinese report gained considerable attention due to recent rumors claiming Apple plans to build a more affordable iPhone this year. The Wall Street Journal said that the device would be geared toward emerging markets such as China, where cheaper smartphones that can be bought without a service contract dominate the market.

Currently, Apple's cheapest iPhone model is the iPhone 4, which can be had for free with a new two-year service contract. But when bought contract-free, the iPhone 4 costs $450 in the U.S., and taxes increase that price to $490 in Chin and $750 in Brazil.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 47
    I don't many people suckered for that story anyway! Sure not I.
  • Reply 2 of 47
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    So is Reuters claiming Schiller didn't make those comments?
  • Reply 3 of 47
    It seems AAPL bear is working very hard before they get killed . Cheap iPhone is the same as apple NetBook theory - bullshit .
  • Reply 4 of 47
    kpomkpom Posts: 660member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by monstrosity View Post



    I don't many people suckered for that story anyway! Sure not I.


     


    Read it a little more closely. It seems that they are trying to re-stoke the rumors. They are withdrawing the story where they reported that Schiller said they wouldn't release a cheaper iPhone.


     


    My guess is that we won't see it any time soon, though. Apple isn't like McDonalds, which tailors its menu for each country. Apple is a consistent take-it-or-leave-it company, for better or for worse. 

  • Reply 5 of 47
    shardshard Posts: 96member


    Apple already has a cheaper iPhone or iPhones. It is the iPhone 4 and 4S. They still compete pretty well with most of the smartphones out there and to be honest, if I am on a budget I really won't complain that my phone does not have the latest and best.

  • Reply 6 of 47
    Really? Apple = cheap. Not! Not happening.
  • Reply 7 of 47
    ksecksec Posts: 1,569member
    I think Apple would actually rise price for places where there are lower tax, and the price you get from Carrier would be the same. Which pushes more users on Carrier contact instead.
  • Reply 8 of 47
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Rogifan View Post



    So is Reuters claiming Schiller didn't make those comments?


    It may be that they weren't accurately translated. The specifics from the interview were not originally written in English. 

  • Reply 8 of 47
    gordygordy Posts: 1,004member


    Everyone knew the story was bs anyway.  Stop trying to make a 'cheap' iPhone work!  The 4S and 4 (and later this year, the 5) fill that niche perfectly.

  • Reply 10 of 47
    What is amazing is that this story was picked up by all the major media outlets that include the New York Times, WSJ, Reuters, etc. Its a major embarrassment that discredits their journalism integrity. I am extremely surprised that they all got it wrong on such a high profile organization like Apple.
  • Reply 11 of 47
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    gordy wrote: »
    Everyone knew the story was bs anyway.  Stop trying to make a 'cheap' iPhone work!  The 4S and 4 (and later this year, the 5) fill that niche perfectly.

    Well, not quite. Even the 4 requires a commitment to spend many hundreds of dollars. It does not fit the 'cheap phone' niche at all.

    Apple is not going to make a phone for the 'cheap phone' niche, but saying that their existing phones fit there is not correct, either.

    propaganda wrote: »
    What is amazing is that this story was picked up by all the major media outlets that include the New York Times, WSJ, Reuters, etc. Its a major embarrassment that discredits their journalism integrity. I am extremely surprised that they all got it wrong on such a high profile organization like Apple.

    Journalistic integrity died with Walter Cronkite (actually, more like his retirement).
  • Reply 12 of 47
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    propaganda wrote: »
    What is amazing is that this story was picked up by all the major media outlets that include the New York Times, WSJ, Reuters, etc. Its a major embarrassment that discredits their journalism integrity. I am extremely surprised that they all got it wrong on such a high profile organization like Apple.
    We don't know though exactly what they got wrong.
  • Reply 13 of 47
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    gatorguy wrote: »
    It may be that they weren't accurately translated. The specifics from the interview were not originally written in English. 
    I must say I was curious about that comment that Apple has 20% marketshare but 70% profits or whatever it was. Just doesn't seem like something Phil Schiller would say to Chinese media. Maybe some things were lost in translation.
  • Reply 14 of 47
    Apple management needs to quell FUD rumors right away. Apple ought to have some sort of media team to collect FUD made up about Apple and then every so often have management come out and correct whatever stupid rumors are circulating. I really hate these stories that are always put out claiming informed anonymous tipsters are giving this information. Anyone can be an anonymous tipster with no inside information at all. No one really needs to know what Apple is doing except Apple. There are too many media outlets that are just sheep following the rest of the herd. Unfortunately, individual bloggers can be held responsible for whatever lies they spread.
  • Reply 15 of 47
    ifij775ifij775 Posts: 470member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by propaganda View Post



    What is amazing is that this story was picked up by all the major media outlets that include the New York Times, WSJ, Reuters, etc. Its a major embarrassment that discredits their journalism integrity. I am extremely surprised that they all got it wrong on such a high profile organization like Apple.


    News seems to be driven by sensationalism and web hits these days. The New York Times already showed they had no scruples with that China labor story last year. Now they have to compete with Drudge and the Huffington Post that will put anything on their website.

  • Reply 16 of 47
    kdarlingkdarling Posts: 1,640member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by gordy View Post


    Everyone knew the story was bs anyway.  Stop trying to make a 'cheap' iPhone work!  The 4S and 4 (and later this year, the 5) fill that niche perfectly.



     


    As someone pointed out above...


     


    They're not withdrawing the story that Apple will make a cheaper phone.


     


    They're withdrawing the story that Schiller said they were not interested in doing so.


     


    Huge difference.

  • Reply 17 of 47
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    kdarling wrote: »
    As someone pointed out above...

    They're not withdrawing the story that Apple will make a cheaper phone.

    They're withdrawing the story that Schiller said they were not interested in doing so.

    Huge difference.

    Cult of Mac is reporting though that they're not seeing any change to that Shanghai Daily piece. The Nex Web, which was one of the first to report this says they got confirmation from Apple that this was an official interview. Why wouldn't Reuters just contact Apple PR to confirm if this was legit or not? I'm assuming if it wasn't true someone from Apple would have denied it. I mean its one thing to not comment on rumors from unnamed sources, but these were actual quotes attributes to Schiller. If something got lost in translation or was just plain inaccurate you'd think Apple would want to set the record straight.
  • Reply 18 of 47


    Funny everyone misinterpreted this statement as Apple not making a cheaper iPhone. Actually it's about Phil Schiller's comment  so Apple will make a less expensive iphone for certain markets worldwide(as in developing countries). I wonder how many Wall Street analysts will mis read it as well?

  • Reply 19 of 47
    Hmmmm ..... In the past Reuters reports from East Asian locations seemed eerily to mirror Samsung's PR position. Maybe someone messed up and printed a story favorable to Apple? The original Chinese is still there and still is a strong denunciation, reportedly by Schiller, of any imputation that Apple will build cheap smatphones to grab market share. %u4E0D%u4F1A%u4E3A%u62A2%u5E02%u573A%u63A8%u5EC9%u4EF7%u667A%u80FD%u624B%u673A. It couldn't be much clearer. Either the Shanghai paper made it up or someone put pressure on Reuters for their own reason
  • Reply 20 of 47
    gatorguygatorguy Posts: 24,176member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Rogifan View Post





    Cult of Mac is reporting ...


    A quick side question: I don't know that I've spent any time reading CultofMac stories till you pointed me to one. Are they usually so blunt and to-the-point about Apple, for example their opinion piece "Why Apple should stop making iOS apps" story? A quick perusal kinda leaves that impression.

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