O2 iPhone Fair Compettion?

inforapennyinforapound_2

So may this is just me being a little bitter and twisted, but given the extortionate price of the iphone and the fact that it is exclusive to O2 is there not an issue about lack of competition?

vikingaero

You produce a product that the sheep want. You can sell it to whichever network you want.

mrochester

inforapennyinforapound wrote: »

So may this is just me being a little bitter and twisted, but given the extortionate price of the iphone and the fact that it is exclusive to O2 is there not an issue about lack of competition?

There is competition. You can buy any other phone on any other network.

Crazy_Jamie

inforapennyinforapound wrote: »

So may this is just me being a little bitter and twisted, but given the extortionate price of the iphone and the fact that it is exclusive to O2 is there not an issue about lack of competition?

You need to go back and look at the rules surrounding competition law again. The relevant market is not iPhones. The relevant market is mobile phones. Ergo there is plentiful competition and absolutely no issue about lack of competition.

mrochester

Crazy_Jamie wrote: »

You need to go back and look at the rules surrounding competition law again. The relevant market is not iPhones. The relevant market is mobile phones. Ergo there is plentiful competition and absolutely no issue about lack of competition.

Yep, this is right. If O2 were the only mobile network, and the iPhone were the only phone, then you can call foul play as there is a lack of competition then. But as it is now, there is masses of competition in the UK mobile market.

sporedude

To be honest there are lot of phones that are better than the iPhone, It aint all that great.

Jakg

You can buy an iPhone SIM free form Play for £600 if you don't like the UK's ultra-subsidised phone market...

agsnu

There are certain anti-competitive behaviours being engaged in here, like the fact that O2 will not unlock iPhones ever (even if you have completed your minimum term)... If you ever stop paying them for service, you lose the use of your device. That is against Ofcom guidance, but they have not yet done anything about it.

sporedude

You can unlock an iPhone, Just that O2 and the other network wont support it if it works outwidth the O2 network (and rightfully so).

mrochester

agsnu wrote: »

There are certain anti-competitive behaviours being engaged in here, like the fact that O2 will not unlock iPhones ever (even if you have completed your minimum term)... If you ever stop paying them for service, you lose the use of your device. That is against Ofcom guidance, but they have not yet done anything about it.

I agree that that definitely shouldn't be allowed. I think networks should be required by law to unlock devices once customers have completed their minimum term contracts, for free, or for a small fee. PAYG customers should be able to request unlock codes immediately. It's just lucky, for now, that O2s £20 Simplicity is the best sim only tariff out there, so I would be using O2 anyway, even though my iPhone locks me to O2 whether I like it or not.

Sol00

sporedude wrote: »

You can unlock an iPhone, Just that O2 and the other network wont support it if it works outwidth the O2 network (and rightfully so).

So will O2 unlock the iPhone for customers once the contract has expired?