Rolling back prices is what Wal-Mart does best, but will the super retailer roll back prices for Apple’s iPhone as part of its Operation Main Street promise to cut costs for Christmas?
Holiday shopping for hot items at a bargain price took on a new form this week as rumors flew on the Web about a 4GB iPhone to be available at Wal-Mart for $99. That phone was initially to be rolled out at a $399 price tag.
The tip about the 4GB iPhone and rumors of Wal-Mart shoppers being trained in activating iPhones was posted on the Boy Genius Report. The site also featured photos of a training manual with the Wal-Mart name and logo on the manual.
“We have made no official comment on offering the iPhone,” said Kelli Cheeseman, a spokesperson for Wal-Mart.
“A $99 iPhone could be an extremely important product as Apple continues the drive to grow market share and Wal-Mart would be the perfect place for that device to land,” said Michael Gartenberg, vice president for mobile strategy at Jupitermedia. “It would also set the stage for the phone to begin to fragment into devices, with different features at different price points. Much like what happened with the iPod.”
Currently, the company has more than 80 iPhone-related products, including carrying cases, chargers, protective film, and antennas available on its Web site, but the products are not shown to be available at retail stores.
The rumored $99 price tag for the 4GB iPhone is expected to come with a two-year agreement, but that may not be enough even for Wal-Mart shoppers.
“Although leading mobile operators are subsidizing more smartphones to reach lower prices, they tie the device to two-year contracts with monthly data-plan rates, which remain too expensive for the mainstream user,” said Roberta Cozza, a Gartner analyst.
Still,…