Pre-orders Start from Midnight on the 23rd
High Preference for Unlocked iPhones
Benefits Include Same-day Delivery for Online Purchases
[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] With the iPhone 12 pre-orders starting on the 23rd, a marketing war among telecom carriers to attract 5G subscribers has begun. As this is the first 5G iPhone to be released and there is accumulated demand waiting to purchase, carriers are offering benefits such as fast delivery and gifts.
Apple Korea and the three major carriers will start iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Pro pre-orders from midnight on the 23rd. The carriers have launched a competition to attract iPhone 12 pre-purchase customers through official online malls and other channels. Due to the impact of COVID-19, the proportion of people buying smartphones online has increased, and carriers, which have strengthened their untact (contactless) policies, are promoting "fast delivery" as a benefit.
The increased preference for unlocked (self-supplied) purchases is also making carriers nervous. Since the official subsidies for iPhones are set low, there is little incentive to purchase through carriers. Moreover, due to the cost burden of 5G plans, more users prefer budget phones or LTE plans. Competition with e-commerce companies such as Coupang and 11st, which are expected to offer card discounts and membership benefits, is inevitable. The carriers’ provision of same-day and early morning delivery benefits also appears to be a response to Coupang’s delivery system.
Mobile carriers are promoting benefits such as same-day delivery ahead of the iPhone 12 pre-order. (Source: T Direct Shop)
SK Telecom offers early morning delivery to the first 1,000 pre-order customers and same-day delivery to the first 2,500 customers through the T Direct Shop. They also run a special compensation program that offers up to 1 million KRW for trading in used phones. Additionally, wireless chargers, sterilizers, and portable batteries are offered as gifts.
KT Shop provides a one-hour same-day delivery service to the first 1,200 subscribers living in the metropolitan area and five major metropolitan cities. Gifts include UV sterilizers, charging cables and adapters, wireless charging pads, and cases. LG Uplus offers iPhone 12 and genuine charging adapters as gifts for pre-alarm event participants.
The carriers are reportedly preparing large-scale activation events for iPhone pre-purchasers at offline stores on the iPhone 12 activation day, the 30th. Due to COVID-19, offline activation events have been nonexistent this year, so there is keen interest in whether they will be revived around the iPhone 12 launch.
Meanwhile, in the US and other countries where pre-orders began on the 16th (local time), iPhone 12 orders have surged. Ming-Chi Kuo, an Apple specialist analyst, estimated on the 3rd that sales on that day reached 2 million units, more than twice the 800,000 pre-orders for the previous iPhone 11.
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