Apple is looking to repeat its U.S. iPad success in countries around the world. The company announced May 28 as the release date for the iPad in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
On Monday, Apple opened up pre-orders on all iPad models from Apple’s online store. Analysts are bullish on the iPad’s global prospects. Apple has already sold over one million iPads in the U.S. Customers have downloaded over 12 million iPad apps from the App Store and more than 1.5 million e-books from the iBookstore.
“The iPad certainly has been an unqualified success in the U.S. with over a million units sold in 28 days and Apple continues to ramp up sales in many places,” said Michael Gartenberg, a partner at Altimeter Group. “People tried to buy the device for Mother’s Day, for example, and found it was in somewhat short supply. You had to look around to find one.”
Gartenberg points to the declining availability in stores, as well as the number of people looking for the iPad on sites like Craigslist and eBay, as reasons to believe that the iPad is going to perform well in international markets.
The iPad allows users to perform like web browsing, reading and sending e-mail, viewing and sharing photos, watching HD videos, listening to music, playing games, and reading e-books using Apple’s Multi-Touch user interface. And the App Store on iPad lets users wirelessly browse, buy and download more than 200,000 that work with the iPad.
“I think we are going to see the iPad do well in the same places that the iPhone has gained traction — and that is most of the countries it’s launching in,” Gartenberg said. “The iPad does seem to be resonating with consumers. Consumers are understanding…