At 14 Jul 2007 16:24:48 -1000 BruceR wrote:

> There is certainly precedent for this type of sale. Look at TIVO and
> ReplayTV. Both have a monthly (or optional lifetime) activation fee
> which, if not paid, turns the unit into a hefty doorstop. One might
> think that only the channel guide info would go away but actually the
> whole unit just goes to sleep till you pay up. However, unlike the
> iPhone, these units were sold at subsidized prices.

True, but the subsidized price wasn't a gift, or a quid pro quo for
having to buy a subscription. It's a marketing scheme to increase
penetration and therefore increase subscription revenue.

In the case of iPhone, the hype and marketing, plus it's single-carrier
exclusivity made equipment subsidies unnecessary to make the unit
marketable. Belive me, if TiVo thought they could sell a significant
number of their 80-hour units for $499 instead of $99, they wouldn't
subsidize either! ;-)



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