Author Archives: Kunal

500 dollars? Fully subsidized? With a plan?

Sample this conversation over IM with Amitabh last week:

Amitabh: u know apple shd come up with an offer that they will pay for all early terminations
Amitabh: people who wanna get the iphone but r not on att
Amitabh: u can only imagine the business that wd bring to att
Amitabh: 😉
Kunal: why do that when people will willingly pay themselves and come to them!
Amitabh: 🙂

Turns out, I wasn’t way off the mark as John Gruber linked to this:

Interpret’s survey also bodes well for AT&T. Half the buyers switched from another carrier. Of those, 35% paid an average $167 to break a contract.

167 dollars average to break the contract – that’s a third of the cost of the 4 GB iPhone, not a trivial amount by any means.

Obviously, people want it, and want it bad – and that’s because their current phones suck. Considering all expenses (phone + activation + commitment + early termination, if any), an iPhone will set you back by around 2000 USD over 2 years – if you stay within the “free minutes” or whatever they call it in the US.

It might be the “most expensive phone in the world” – but the customers are happy to pay for it and Apple + AT&T are obviously happy with it’s success. Everybody wins? Try telling that to Steve Ballmer.

The Susie

Here’s an example of why Seinfeld rocks.

This is the transcript of the “teaser” before The Susie. (( Surprisingly I couldn’t find this transcript online. I guess when Stan the Caddy misses it, all the sites carrying “original” scripts do. I ended up typing it up myself.))

(George and Elaine riding in the back of a cab)

George: Hey, if I were a gigolo, how much do you think I could charge a night?
Elaine: Here, or in Japan?
George: What’s the difference?
Elaine: Well, the Japanese are more enlightened. They can see beyond the physical.
George: Forget Japan, how much would you pay?
Elaine: Oh, I don’t know. A dollar?
George: I think I am worth atleast 300.
Elaine (laughs): I don’t think so!
George: Hey, it’s for all night!
Elaine: I know!
George: You are demeaning me.
Elaine: You are a gigolo!
George: Well, you hired me. I am the victim here.
Elaine: Did I force you into this line?
George: Yes. You and every woman like you.

And that’s not even a Larry David. Well done Mr. David Mande.

[tags]Seinfeld[/tags]