“It looks like Apple Inc.’s iPhone may soon be headed to Canada, although not in time for the holidays,” Catherine McLean reports for The Globe and Mail Update
“Molson Dry beer is giving away iPhones, valued at $800 [Canadian], as one of a number of prizes in a marketing contest. The rules note that the iPhones will only be available as of January 2008 on the wireless network of Rogers Communications Inc. While winners will get the cool new cellphones for free, they will need to pay for the service themselves,” McLean reports.
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Shawn P.” for the heads up.]
The Canadian dollar has been running in the $1.00 to $1.03 US range, and trending upward. Even if this is a new 16 GB model, this is a crazy price. If there is to be a price difference, it should be less in Canada than in the US.
That’s my dollar and 3 cents worth.
WTF….The Canadian dollar is worth more than the American peso these days!. Sooooo…if an iPhone is $399 in the US, then why is it $800 here?!
C’mon Apple….get with the program!!!
That price isn’t reflective of the actual sale price, as the contest involves getting a prize pack that adds up to a certain amount, they can assign whatever price they want to items.
MDN Magic Word “forces” as in “Apple forces me to hack my iPhone because its not yet supported here”
I’ll bet the prize is actually a “prize package” that includes some kind of data package from Rogers.
This is the only reasonable possibility.
While Apple hasn’t changed the prices of their computers yet, they ARE offering Leopard at the same price as the US.
I suspect the price change will happen for hardware soon. I’ll bet it’s to let retailers like London Drugs keep from getting hosed.
$800 = $400 for the phone and about $35 a month for services for a year, which is about what the cheapest plans cost in Canada. Of course, the article says that the winner(s) only get the phone, not services.
I’ll go away now.
Drell…this also pertains to Apple products in general. They are just more expensive up here. They have not changed even though the dollar has moved from 70¢ to 1.03 American.
We should expect SOME reduction in price!
Now wait just a doggone minute, if Molson is giving away iPhones, why can’t Apple give away some beer.
Looks like Molson will be booted in favor of Labatt’s now – but we won’t know that until January, when it’s announced – and we find out that SJ blew a gasket and cancelled the original deal. :/
(Remember that little spat with the video board maker a few years back?)
Gives new meaning to “free as in beer”, eh?
@Sherm
WTF….The Canadian dollar is worth more than the American peso these days!. Sooooo…if an iPhone is $399 in the US, then why is it $800 here?!
What does it matter. If you visit MDN a lot you know us Fanboys would pay $1200 For it!! Woooo Hooooo Steve!!! If Steve says $800 is a great price, then it is!! It is not for us fanboys to question!!!!
Let’s hope that Apple doesn’t cave to Rogers on the price. I’d be prepared to boycott if they allow rogers to charge double the US prices.
Apple prices are starting to come in to alignment with their US counterpart. I recently exchanged emails with Apple over my concern about being charged $139.00 Cdn for the renewal of my .Mac service. Their response was essentially that prices are set uniquely in each country. Surprisingly, less than 12 hrs after this exchange the price dropped to $109.00. Probably not where it should be but much more consistent with other retailing price adjustments. At least it demonstrates they are acknowledging that things need adjustment.
@Sherm
I think your wrong on Apple prices being higher. Since the American buck started it’s decent into the toilet, Apple is one of the few companies that has changed their prices. The new nano is 199 bucks both in Canada and the US for instance.
Until uncle Steve says it’s coming here, I’m not holding my breath. Contest or no contest. Prizes can be changed anytime.
How about people not getting all worked up over a report about a contest from a company which has not announced the contest yet, for a product which has not been announced as being available in that country yet, with the article stating that the $800 is the VALUE of the prize, NOT stating that $800 is the MSRP of the iPhone in Canada.
Oh, sorry, I guess people would have to read the article, think about it for awhile, and then post, rather than flip out, fire off a quick post, and then wait for the rest of us to properly inform them.
Good one ibuschjr…….
mmmmmmmmmmm……beer
@lbuschjr – Sometimes I pay attention, sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I read and comprehend what is presented, sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I feel like a nut, sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I want to be the one who knows what the right answer is, sometimes I want to be the one who doesn’t give a crap and will say anything to get a rise out out of someone else. Almond Joy’s got nuts. Mounds don’t. Sometimes it’s more fun reading what others are saying, sometimes it’s more fun to chime in…
Canadian Beer!
MDN Word is: girl
Beer and girl is good!
The price of the prize packages includes Canadian socialist retroactive tax for all the phones Molson could of given away over the years.
Just my $0.02
lbuschjr actually the contest has been announced and is active, that is how this all leaked out you can see the WEB page if you can read french http://www.deviseetcompte.com/splash.aspx
The $800 sounds rite is all we are talking about is 1 month of Rogers grossly over priced Data Plan.
If it is iPhone 2.0 with 3G technology, an Intel chip set making it a true handheld Mac, 32 GB of flash memory and they have a bidding war between Telus and Bell for the rights and cheap data plans, $800 could be the correct price.
If not iPhone 2.0, no one but a few Toronto Fashionistas will buy it at that price and Rogers rate plans.
I think it’s a load of cobblers. Interesting that the $800 is the same sum used in the Holt Renfrew hoax of a few weeks ago.
$800 is the actual winning amount. However, the iPhone will be $299 here in Canada and the balance will be for Rogers Comm. who have pretty much a monpoly in Canuckland and having been fscking consumers for years. Greed isn’t just an American disease.
MDN word – from, as in “from the great white north eh”