Comments on: Despite sanctions, Apple gear sales boom in Iran

By: Rayan.M

Rayan.M — Fri, 27 Jul 2012 18:27:54 +0000

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By: Paul

Paul — Sat, 14 Jul 2012 02:09:42 +0000

In other news: MS windows PC’s built by HP and Dell were refused entry by customs officials in Tehran.

By: locutus

locutus — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 23:20:01 +0000

By: Shock Me

Shock Me — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 17:41:26 +0000

I think Macs should be airdropped into Iran to support the free flow of information from abroad.

By: Raymond in DC

Raymond in DC — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 16:38:10 +0000

As in Saudi Arabia, there’s no official presence (Apple Store) in Israel. All imports go through iDigital, an “exclusive distributor” which happens to be owned by President Peres’ son. After import duties, VAT and a little monopoly profiteering, prices there too are 30-40% above US retail.

That may change at some point as Apple now has a different kind of presence there. After buying a local high-tech firm (Anobit) specializing in flash ram, Apple is assembling its own R&D facility there.

Much of the Iranian smuggling, by the way, is handled by the IRGC – the Revolutionary Guard Corps – who are also running Iran’s nuclear and missile projects.

By: tbone

tbone — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 15:50:29 +0000

Perhaps eliminating language support for hostile govts. would SLOW the effect of this.

By: Balance

Balance — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 15:28:53 +0000

agh, refreshing, a voice of reason.

Amazing how short sighted some people are.

By: leodavinci1

leodavinci1 — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 15:22:04 +0000

In a perfect world where the most likely outcome for peacefully attempting to bring down despotic regimes wasn’t death, most people would probably be inclined to overthrow oppressive rulers.

However, human nature and the instinct for survival pretty much insures that most people will go along with the status quo they (and their parents, and their parents’ parents, ad infinitum) have lived under their entire lives.

In much of the world most people have lived under a steady change of oppressive regimes, one after another, with no idea of alternatives. The idea of an alternative to what they’ve lived under isn’t even in their concept of reality.

It’s easy to be unrealistically idealistic when one has never spent a day or an hour, let alone their entire life, living under such circumstances.

It’s quite another when you’ve lived your entire life under an alternative system, and then watched over the course of much of that life as your peers frittered away the freedom and liberty that your and their grandparent’s grandparents fought and died to establish and maintain.

And do it all for the “common good” and “security”… the two most false gods of government and politics.

By: Thomas Paine

Thomas Paine — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 14:23:14 +0000

…on the theory that when their government causes enough pain for them, the people will revolt against it. In the end analysis, the people are in charge, and if they don’t like what their government is doing, they have the duty to do something about it. In this case, their silence indicates their consent.

By: misterME

misterME — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 14:19:51 +0000

I find it hard to believe the products are selling for “just above US prices”. Here in Saudi Arabia, where there are no sanctions, most Apple gear sells at a 30 – 40% above US retail. Because Apple doesn’t have an official presence here, most likely due to lax IP protection laws, products here are “grey- market”, meaning they’re sourced through unifficial channels. Usually, they’re purchased in the US or EU at full retail by a “holding company”, shipped here (where customs takes their cut, usually in a percentage if actual products), and resold at US retail price Customs costs markup, male among your average entry-level iPad sells for between $600 and $700. The only exception is typically the iPhone, which is sold officially here through several carriers.

So I doubt it’s “just barely” over US retail in Iran, considering the risks involved, unless they’re calling a 50% markup “barely above”…

By: Ballmer's left nut

Ballmer's left nut — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 14:01:34 +0000

You mean you’ve never heard of the Ayatollah Ballmer MS Store in Redmond, Washington?

By: derss

derss — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 13:19:25 +0000

The most of those sanctions never make governments suffer. People always do.

By: RastaMouse

RastaMouse — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 12:32:19 +0000

I’d love to see an M$ store in Tehran