Azerbaijan, Baku, March 19 / Trend H. Valiyev /
Azerbaijani mobile communication operator Azercell Telekom LLC is going to subsidise sales of Apple smartphones, CEO Kiril Gaburich told Trend.
According to him, negotiating with Apple is quite difficult because in addition to its rigid pricing policy, the company sets also certain conditions for the purchase of its devices.
The operator is going to purchase Apple products for their further sale to its consumers.
"We are ready to cooperate with those partners who make interesting suggestions. Our distributors will be dealing with the Apple products. Negotiating with Apple is not easy. The company sells its products at high prices, so we are not able to subsidise the required amount. However, I am sure that we will achieve this," Gaburich said.
The scheme of subsidising smartphones is actively used in Europe and the U.S. where operators sell them below the cost in cases when subscribers sign long term contracts (usually for one or two years), providing guaranteed communication services for a monthly user charge.
Prices of subsidised iPhone smartphones in the U.S are subject to a two-year contract with a mobile operator, are 199, 299 and cost $399, depending on the embedded memory capacity.