The Battle for the iPhone Has Started in Europe

The iPhone is barely 3 days old, and already mobile phone operators in Europe are scrambling to get the coveted "exclusive deal" with Apple. The article from The Times in the UK goes on and cites several operators reputedly negotiating with Apple; among them O2, Vodafone, Telefónica, Orange and T-Mobile are all contenders for the contract.
The iPhone is again reported not 3G-compatible in its current status, but it remains still unclear if the delayed introduction in Europe and Japan is only due to distribution rights negotiations or rather required by some technical/hardware upgrades to make it more suited for more advanced networks technologies in Europe and Japan. But with the moderate adoption of 3Gs in most European countries over the last year, one can imagine that Apple might not bother preparing a special version for Europe, in Japan it will be another story .
Now, how many of us will consider changing the mobile phone subscription and/or carrier only based on the availability of the iPhone? Let us know in the dedicated topic on our forum: here.
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