Tuesday November 20, 09:52 AM
Vodafone challenges exclusive German iPhone deal
FRANKFURT (AFP) - British telecommunications operator Vodafone (LSE: VOD.L - news) wants a court to decide whether Deutsche Telekom (Xetra: 555750 - news) can have exclusive rights to German distribution of the iPhone mobile telephone, a press report said Tuesday.
"It is not right that our clients can only get an iPhone by signing a long-term contract with Telekom," the head of Vodafone in Germany, Friedrich Joussen, told the mass circulation daily Bild Zeitung.
T-Mobile, the mobile subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom, acquired exclusive German distribution rights for Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL - news) 's multi-media iPhone, which has caused a stir as it is introduced worldwide.
"We want a rapid judicial clarification to know if the iPhone should be available to all or only to some," Joussen said.
The German daily Handelsblatt said Vodafone had filed a complaint with a court in the northern port of Hamburg, which Deutsche Telekom confirmed.
Press reports say T-Mobile agreed to pay Apple between 10 and 30 percent of the operator's iPhone sales in order to seal the distribution deal.
In addition to the 399-euro (589-dollar) cost of the phone, customers must subscribe to the T-Mobile service.
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