“When Apple Inc rolled out its iPhone in the United States, some fans paid big money to be among the first to get their hands on the device. In Poland, people are getting paid to line up,” Chris Borowski reports for Reuters.
“‘We have these fake queues at front of 20 stores around the country to drum up interest in the iPhone,’ a spokesman said,” Borowski reports.
MacDailyNews Take: A spokesman whose head, if it actually exists, Orange will soon serve up on a silver platter to Apple CEO Steve Jobs.
Borowski continues, “As part of a marketing campaign ahead of the iPhone’s Friday launch in Poland, the country’s largest mobile operator Orange is paying dozens of actors to stand in queues.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: If Borowski’s report is accurate, that spokesman is definitely Polish.
Something smells fishy.
May the spokesperson R.I.P.
MDN…wow. Funny one.
If true, Apple needs to ‘reallocate’ all shipments of iPhones to Poland to somewhere else…
and then terminate their contract with Orange.
Well, you’d think that with Multi-touch, it would take about 5 citizens to operate one. No wonder they don’t want one! Smart fellers–sick of being the butt of all those jokes.
LOL. You can’t write stuff that’s funnier than this.
Reuters have something of a track record for making up stories, they’ve also done it with Apple stories before now.
It will be interesting to see if this story holds up to scrutiny.
I confirm from Poland: it’s true. Silly as it sounds, Orange made that happen. Fortunately they’re not the only network to sell iPhones in Poland, and the other networks did not come up with such dumb ideas
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Huh? It’s the iPhone there is no need to pay people to create a fake line. If this is true, whoever that marketing person that came up with this idea is an idiot. Sorry I hate calling people names, but he/she deserves this one.
What really sucks is that people in countries where the iphone is not available (SA) would pay big $ to get their hands on one, yet it keeps on getting released in countries where people dont care about it or who cannot afford it. I saw a 1st gen in a shop yesterday for $800.00. Oh well I think we will just have to wait and hope we get it soon.
From the World Free Press: Sales of the iPhone in Poland were sharply down on the opening day. Telephone company Orange said their were long queues of excited buyers outside their stores before opening on Friday morning, all waiting to get their hands on Apple’s ‘got to have’ gadget called the ‘iPhone’, but later in the day store managers were over heard complaining of poor sales. One store manager in Warsaw stated, “I don’t understand it, we had 20 or 30 people lined up outside for hours in the rain, but when we opened the doors- the people came in, ate the free donuts and coffee, then filed out without buying a single phone!”. Reports such as this are coming in from all over Poland.
In other news: People in Poland are celebrating what seems to be a giant windfall of cash. Hundreds of people are talking up their good fortune of receiving a full days wage to stand in line for donuts at several local establishments. One man was quoted as saying, “This day was great! I was on vacation and got an extra days wages for just standing in a line!” The man plans on spending his new found fortune upgrading his worn out Windows 95 computer.
I read that when Germany invaded Poland they told them they were leaving, then walked in backwards!
%-O
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Note to those in Poland:
Please don’t take our teasing you as a bad thing. For some reason, here in the USA we have used the Polish people as a end joke. We don’t mean anything bad to you and hope you can just smile and take our jokes for what they are worth…not much. We don’t mean to offend and consider Poland as a great friend and ally.
I, once again, would like to remind everyone here: Don’t Forget Poland!
Way to insult the Polish people based on stereotypes, MDN. Although, considering that the Polish people continue to support the far-right Kaczynski twins, who are among the strongest European supporters of the Bush administration…
Birds of a feather, no doubt.
Yes this reminds of the the time my uncle Marius was in a helicopter and he was cold. So he turns the fan off and the helicopter crashed in the cemetery. Police recovered 500 bodies.
So this guy says he has a great polish joke, do they want to hear it? Yes. all but one says. And that one says “Hey, I am Polish, you know.”
Oh I didn’t know, so OK then, I will tell it real slow.
I’ve always thought mac users were a bunch of smart, tolerant and open-minded people. Some of the comments above have proven me wrong… Do take your bashing somewhere else, and focus on facts.
Orange did have people standing in fake lines outside their flagship retail stores in Poland. The spokesperson did say this was done to incite even more hype around the iPhone 3G launch. While you may find this idea strange or even downright stupid, let me give you some reasons why people may not actually be flocking in front of Orange or Era stores (these two providers sell iPhone 3G in Poland). All this from a Mac user, prospective iPhone buyer.
1. Although subsidized, the phone is still rather expensive. Just a quick look at the price list; the most affordable option – 8GB model – $178, 2 year contract, $67/month plan (200 minutes talk time, 0.5GB data). All that in a context of an average Polish salary of ca. $1200/month… The plans and options are also not fully clear; information posted on providers’ websites seems to contradict itself at places.
2. While I am fully convinced, that this IS a phenomenal, break-through device and a real game-changer, this may not be obvious to some. People look at this device as just a phone, not as a phone + the best ipod + Internet device. They (rightly) say that you can buy some other high-spec phones for a fraction of the iPhone price. They may miss on a totally different user experience here, but this is how most people see it.
3. Add to this a recent wave of rather negatively-biased iPhone coverage on some Polish media; these tried to downplay the importance of the launch and exaggerate the perceived ‘issues’ plaguing the phone (poor 3G connectivity, lack of MMS). Some of the “facts” were just plain misinformation. Makes me wonder who paid these “reporters”. Basically, according to the reports, iPhone is nothing but a gadget for bored yuppies willing to show off.
4. And where’s Apple in all this? Unfortunately, Poland still seems to be a minor, insignificant market for the Company. Still not sure if it’s Apple or the local representative who runs the operations here. And the operations, although much improved in recent months/years, still leave something to be desired in terms of the level of service, spreading positive image and information and sheer competence.
5. What follows from the above, the crucial software / hardware / services integration that is so central to a full mac experience is somewhat crippled. No online Apple store, no iTunes Store, no easily accessible printing services, missing / crippled localization of crucial Apple apps, all this seriously impedes what could potentially be a phenomenal experience.
Just my $.03. I’ll see in a few hours if I succeed in getting my hands on one of these babies.
We’re all just jealous that nobody pays us to stand in line here in the U.S.
All those years I stood there for free, with no bad weather bonus pay either. Damn. The Poles are on to something!
I can’t see a win situation for Apple in this. If the phone sells well, the scumbag media will say it’s due to con job by Apple. If it doesn’t sell, one can only imagine the gloating.
The only solution is to stop selling iPhone in Poland immediately and fire everyone involved.
If the whole thing is a scam, Apple should sue.
@Milo: Even “smart, tolerant and open-minded people” enjoy it when reality plays straight into the stereotypes used in a typical Pollock joke.
Come on folks, Poland just got a lot of money to put up some AENUS Patriot missiles with the now famous “aim for Bin, hit Saddam” guidance system. Let them enjoy their new found luxury, oh wait, AENUS members can’t stand the thought of anyone enjoying freedom peace and love.
“A spokesman whose head, if it actually exists, Orange will soon serve up on a silver platter to Apple CEO Steve Jobs.”
MDN’s right Steve’s going to be really pissed at him for blowing the whistle on Apple’s worldwide astroturfing program.
For example, actors playing hipsters are paid to fill Apple’s US lines and stores, after all most people don’t feel happy shopping in a shop full of slightly weird Mac fanboys. If the stores were allowed to be full of traditional Apple supporters, you’d walk in and have that vibe that all the people around you were all not quite there mentally. Apple’s done a great job in paying “shopping” actors to dilute out that effect.
“We’re all just jealous that nobody pays us to stand in line here in the U.S. “
You’re right, nobody pays YOU to stand in line in the US.
“…the country’s largest mobile operator Orange is paying dozens of actors to stand in queues.”
Either this is, as they say. a marketing campaign or Orange is so stupid as to pay actors instead of ordinary people to queue up.
Or, Polish actors are really destitute.