“The iWatch would achieve faster, more extensive mass adoption were it to be subsidized,” Bold Investor writes for Seeking Alpha. “Although Apple estimates that subsidization now accounts for “only” about a quarter of iPhone sales, subsidization was even more crucial in the iPhone’s mass adoption early on. After all, the iPhone has always cost a pretty penny, and if some consumers do not notice this, this fact can be attributed entirely to carrier subsidies.”
“Let’s assume for the sake of argument that Apple introduces a wearable that has multiple, well-executed capabilities involving advanced sensors, as suggested by Apple’s recent ‘hiring spree’ in the area of medical technology and sensors,” Bold Investor writes. “Such features are likely to include non-invasive measurement of glucose, heart rate, blood pressure and respiration. Let’s also suppose that the iWatch will include something unexpected or difficult to execute, like the ability to contact emergency services if the user needs an ambulance. Suppose the iWatch is something along these lines: who might subsidize such a device?”
Let us consider three possible sources of iWatch subsidies:
1. Insurance Providers
2. Pharmaceutical Companies
3. The Federal Government
Read more in the full article here.