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Blog: Gadgets Apple's iPhone Rebate: Some Conditions Apply
Jason Mick (Blog) - September 17, 2007 1:00 PM
Print 16 comment(s) - last by VooDooAddict.. on Sep 18 at 10:29 AM
Apple released the terms of its $100 iPhone rebate today via a post on its website.

If you are an iPhone owner, or are merely curious to know what the $100 dollar rebate is all about, go to Apple's application page on its website, as reported by DailyTech, but beware--conditions do apply.

The $100 rebate for Apple customers who were early adopters of the iPhone was reported by DailyTech two weeks ago.

Now Apple seems to have backtracked a bit by offering some unwelcome limitations to its rebate.

The rebate cannot be spent at iTunes.  It cannot be spent on Apple gift cards.

The rebate can only be spent in Apple stores, not Apple resellers, and only at Apple stores within the U.S.

Customers with iPhones registered to addresses outside the U.S. cannot receive the rebate.

Only iPhones that have been activated through AT&T are eligible (unfortunate for users who unlocked their iPhones to use on T-Mobile's network).

The offer also only lasts until November 30th.

Apple's new terms were probably intended to fly under-the-radar unnoticed, but they are an unwelcome sight for those hoping to use their refund to by iTunes, or international business people who live abroad.

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"Early Adopters" -should- pay a premium
By ubicomp on 9/17/2007 3:14:48 PM , Rating: 4
It's ridiculous to assume that all of the first people to rush out and buy their iPhone should necessarily pay the same amount as those who rationally wait 3 months, 6 months or a year for the hype to die down. Those that are foolish enough, and want the gadget bad enough -should- pay more for that privilege. Apple will set the price at what the market will bear. The fact that people are all up in arms about that are crying for no legitimate reason. If they wanted to pay less, they should have waited. That Apple is doing anything at all to assuage their financial guilt at having wasted $200 of their money, is a gift, not a rebate. Consider yourselves lucky.

You'll be first in line the next time Steve Jobs poops out his next wonder gadget. Don't complain then too.




RE: "Early Adopters" -should- pay a premium
By TomZ on 9/17/2007 3:36:48 PM , Rating: 2
If Apple treats early adopters in the way that you advocate, you'll find they have far fewer early adopters when they release products in the future. Therefore, this strategy is effectively Apple shooting itself in the foot.


RE: "Early Adopters" -should- pay a premium
By Anh Huynh on 9/17/2007 3:55:04 PM , Rating: 3
It happens with everything else, why should Apple provide any exceptions?

There's always an early adopter premium. Take the RAZR for example, early adopters were paying hundred for a phone that was just cool looking and didn't necessarily do anything new or better than anything else available.

Now the phone is free and people don't even want them anymore.

Plasma TVs also once cost $10k, now they're around $1500 for a decent brand one.

Apple providing rebates for early adopters is just a move to keep their existing customers without any PR backlash.

They really have no need to offer price matching outside of 30 days anyways, because within 30 days people can get their money back.

And yes, I bought an iPhone, but I waited for the price drop because I was patient :D.


By TomZ on 9/17/2007 10:12:22 PM , Rating: 2
I disagree - RAZR didn't come down 33% in price just a few weeks after it came out. In addition, when RAZR prices came down, it wasn't a huge media circus to where nearly all existing customers were aware of the large cut.

Sure, it's expected that early adopters will pay some premium, but they don't expect to have their noses rubbed in it.


RE: "Early Adopters" -should- pay a premium
By Hare on 9/17/2007 4:08:07 PM , Rating: 3
quote:
If Apple treats early adopters in the way that you advocate, you'll find they have far fewer early adopters when they release products in the future.

Treats? Apple should have acted just like all other businesses and refused to give anything. Now people are moaning because their free 100$ has certain usage terms. Tough luck! If anything Apple is being generous to even give the 100$. The lowering of the price shouldn't even concern the early adaptors. Apple lowered the price and now also caters to another segment that doesn't include the early adaptors.

Early adaptors pay premium, it doesn't matter if the seller is Apple, Abit, Asus, Samsung, Nokia, IBM or any other. Everyone knew the price would drop. Suck it up.


By Hare on 9/18/2007 2:06:51 AM , Rating: 2
By AmbroseAthan on 9/18/2007 9:53:13 AM , Rating: 2
As TomZ stated above; its not that a price cut happened, but the extreme the price-cut was. I didn't buy an iPhone, but when the price-cut was announced I cringed.

Early adaptors should have to pay more; but they tend to also be safe in knowing the price will come down slowly and allow more people to buy into it. The iPhone price-drop was drastic enough, and soon enough, it was a slap in the face to people who bought one previously. If Apple had simply lowered the price by $50, or even $100, and in like two months made another cut, they would have avoided most of this.

Early adaptors should pay a premium, but this price-cut was too big & too soon, so they should pay the PR consequences.


They should have just left it alone
By Verran on 9/17/2007 1:09:50 PM , Rating: 1
Nowhere else do you get this kind of refund when prices drop. Spending a lot on a product only to see the price fall is unfortunate, but it happens everyday. That's the price of early adoption, and everyone knows it, whether they will admit it or not.

But now Apple's offered the olive branch, then raised it just out of reach and started jiggling it teasingly. They're going to catch more flack for all these "ifs" and "buts" than they would have if they'd just done nothing.




By Griswold on 9/17/2007 1:29:53 PM , Rating: 2
Mission Accomplished!

They fought bad PR with some candy stuck on a catch.

Jobs' 5 steps of crisis management:

1. Bad Apple! How dare you fooling your loyal customers?
2. Offer a $100 refund
3. Good Apple! See, that is my Apple, they saw their mistake and fixed the situation!
4. The small print surfaces but its too late for the second round of media bashing because they already hailed to everybody's darling.
5. Happy Steve smiling behind his huge CEO desk.


By rsmech on 9/18/2007 3:01:34 AM , Rating: 2
quote:
But now Apple's offered the olive branch,

You mean put on their dunce hat. These restrictions were predictable, I was just waiting for the article. If it wasn't a big deal it wouldn't have upset so many people. It wasn't an olive branch, Mr. Jobs seen he pissed off a lot of people, more than an acceptable amount. Either you are saying stupid people love Apple or Apple made a stupid move so soon, you can't have it both ways.


So it's not really a rebate?
By novacthall on 9/17/2007 1:12:02 PM , Rating: 5
It seems to me that it's not really a rebate at all. It's more of a ticket to buy more Apple stuff, most of which they're no doubt hoping will end up costing you more than the money (and I use that term losely) they're dishing out.

In the end, Apple, not the consumer, wins. How... well, Apple of them.

I can see how it's nice they're doing this, and Ol' Steve's on board thinking it's "the right thing", but having been screwed by Apple in the past, I can also see how they're sticking it to the customer. Some things never change.




Taking clues
By Screwballl on 9/17/2007 2:05:10 PM , Rating: 2
someone has been taking clues from MS.... charge the highest price allowable in the market since you have the only item available... then drop the price after you hit a quota and when people complain, give them store credit to buy more of your junk...
Apple is making more money from this deal which is their goal.

The smart people will either use the credit to buy something they may need (car charger perhaps?) or not bother with the "credit" application.




RE: Taking clues
By TomZ on 9/17/2007 10:06:29 PM , Rating: 2
All companies should price their products at the maximum price the market will bear. If they don't, then they are doing a disservice to the shareholders. It is management's duty and responsibility to maximize profitability for the shareholders, period. Management that deviates from this level of performance should be removed from their position.

Part of being successful in business it to take care of your customers. A large price cut so soon after iPhone was released is a slap in the face of Apple's most enthusiastic customers - the early adopters.

I don't recall Microsoft having made the same mistake, at least in recent memory.


Brilliant
By Murst on 9/17/2007 1:19:44 PM , Rating: 2
Its a great move by apple. They're using the success of the iPhone to get more sales. Probably the only way they'd come out at the short end of the stick on this deal is if everyone cashed in for the cheapest iPod, which isn't going to happen.




take it back
By dcdc on 9/17/2007 1:36:51 PM , Rating: 2
Could one conceivably go get their $100 coupon, then take the phone back the next day, and the day after that buy a $400 phone and use their $100 coupon?




By VooDooAddict on 9/18/2007 10:29:55 AM , Rating: 2
Seems a pretty standard set of limitations.

Still enables iPhone owners to buy a bunch of cases/chargers/headphones/headsets.

Gift cards are regularly excluded from specials at most retailers.

If people unlocked the phone then Apple isn't making long term $$ from them. And Apple shouldn't feel obligated to give unlocking customers a free handout.




"Nowadays, security guys break the Mac every single day. Every single day, they come out with a total exploit, your machine can be taken over totally. I dare anybody to do that once a month on the Windows machine." -- Bill Gates













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