First iPhone in Vodafone Romania's offer

Vodafone, no. 2 on the Romanian mobile phone market, has for the first time introduced Apple iPhone 3GS in its offer, one of the world's best-selling smartphones, at prices that range between 249 and 449 euros. Apple's mobile phones had been previously available at lower prices as contract phones only from Orange - Apple's exclusive partner in Romania.

Vodafone decided to get the iPhone from an Apple distributor and sell it at lower prices for subscribers in order to protect its customer base, believes Gabriel Sandu, former owner of Proton, a retailer bought by the British group.

"Vodafone had to do something because the company's target market consists of exactly those users that want and can afford to buy mobile Internet services and a smartphone such as Apple's," believes Sandu, who says iPhone's extensive popularity has brought Orange new customers. "I know not only of companies, but also of mayors who have had the institution's entire telecom services account switched over to Orange so they could buy an iPhone."

Orange specified it would remain an exclusive partner for Apple in Romania. The only comment Vodafone made on the offer was that it "recommended" its customers looking to buy an iPhone "a number of distributors who can help deliver the phones to them."