Apple's iPhone Exclusivity Upheld

Deutsche Telekom's (DT - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating) T-Mobile unit won a German court decision upholding the telco's deal to exclusively sell locked Apple (AAPL - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr - Rating) iPhones.

The decision is a defeat for Vodafone (VOD - Cramer's Take - Stockpickr), which sought an injunction to prevent T-Mobile from selling so-called locked iPhones under the requirement that users sign two-year contracts.

The move comes two weeks after a German court ordered T-Mobile to stop selling locked iPhones. T-Mobile responded by announcing it would sell unlocked, contract-free iPhones for $1,481, in an effort to honor the decision and compensate for the loss of potential revenue. T-Mobile's regular price for the iPhone is $591.85.

The challenge by Vodafone could have threatened Apple's unique royalty and revenue sharing arrangement with its telco partners. In exchange for exclusive iPhone selling rights, phone companies agreed to share a percentage of the monthly subscription revenue with Apple. It is estimated that Apple enjoys a 10% cut of the proceeds.

Deutsche Telekom shares rose 40 cents to $22.54 and Apple was up 59 cents to $179.45 in midmorning trading Tuesday.

The Leopard's been let loose

Indo Asian News Service
Last Updated: October 27, 2007 01:18:07

wire photo
Los Angeles, October 27: Apple has released a new operating system for its ever more popular Mac computers.

he upgraded OS 10.5, nicknamed Leopard, was released Friday and includes some 300 improvements including a 'time machine' that tracks and resurrects lost data, and improved video-conferencing abilities.

he eagerly awaited system was delayed by several months while the company's engineers worked on developing the iPhone.

ival Microsoft, whose software powers 90 per cent of the world's computers, released its newest operating system, Vista, in January.

The release came just days after Apple announced record-breaking sales of its Mac computers, which analysts attributed to a 'halo effect' from the success of its iPod music players and iPhones.