The Zeitgeist

I was surprised that Apple dropped the price on the iPhone on Wendesday too. I was more surprised at the immediate nasty reaction from some bitter iPhone purchasers - it’s interesting that these early iPhone user feel so cheated. I think that there’s more here than meets the eye than just the $200 price difference. It seems to me (being someone who really wanted an iPhone on “day one.” but decided I could really wait after all) that they are really upset that the loss of their “elite” status as early adopters. Apple, and any other company for that matter, is entitled to charge whatever the market will bear for thie product, as long as they are not violating any laws (such as price fixing, tying, etc.). Apple made a business decision to drop one model, the 4GB iPhone, and broaden the reach of the premier model. It’s sounds like terrible whining on the part of these folks to squak so loudly; this is the world of early adopter: get in early, get the bragging rights, etc. Eventually more people are going to join your soon-to-be-not-so-elite club. The same process happened with the Motorola RAZR which was the “new hotness” of 2 summers past… but I don’t recall people calling for heads of Moto exec when the price dropped in the Fall of 2005 when they flooded the market with RAZRs…

Apple and Steve Jobs responded in a way well above and beyond anything they were obligated to. In fact, this may turn out to be yet another brilliant move by Jobs. His “open letter” to iPhone buyers was simply perfect:

• He acknowledged that people were upset
• He pointed out that in his 30+ years of experience, that in the world of technology things are fast-paced and pricing models change rapidly.
• He thanked them for being Apple customers and offered to show his appreciation with a $100 gift certificate good at the Apple Store.

Utterly Brilliant Move. He hit all the right notes: he didn’t talk down to his customers; he acknowledged that they are the people who make Apple successful; and he thanked them for being customers in a tangible way.

I think at the end of the day, everyone who feels slighted needs to calm down and think about this from a different angle:

• You bought a product that is so amazing that every company on the planet is falling all over themselves to imitate it; you got in early — you were brilliant — bravo to YOU!
• Apple wants more people to have the same experience you’re having with your wicked-cool phone, so they’ve made it more accessible to more people.
• Apple is explicitly and publicly thanking you for your faith in their products, and in essence giving you more free stuff to play with for being an early adopter.

Sounds like an all-around win for everyone…

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