Local iPhone Marketing

 

Will the iPhone 6S and 6S+ shake the Korean smartphone market again?

Apple officially announced on Oct. 9 through its homepage that the iPhone 6S and 6S+ will be introduced to Korea through SK Telecom, KT, and LG U+ on Oct. 23. The iPhone 6S series will be made available for advance orders starting on Oct. 16. As a result, much attention is being paid to whether or not the three carriers will compete for marketing through mobile phone subsidies, as they did in the case of the iPhone 6 and 6+.

The price of the iPhone 6S series is more than 100,000 won (US$87.14) higher than that of the iPhone 6 series, which means a bigger burden for consumers. Hence, the three carriers' mobile phone subsidies are expected to have a huge impact on the early sales volume of the new models. When the iPhone 6 and 6+ were launched, LG U+, the first carrier to sell those new models, unleashed an aggressive marketing campaign, including a reward system for used phones. The marketing campaign played a role as a catalyst for competition between three carriers for the sale of the iPhone 6 and 6+.

With Apple's iPhone 6S series scheduled to be released in the nation earlier than expected, competition in the local premium phone market is likely to intensify. Samsung Electronics has lowered the launch price of the Galaxy S6 series, and LG Electronics has also set the price of the V10 at around 700,000 won (US$609.92). It indicates that they are adopting a competitive pricing strategy. However, since iPhone users are loyal to Apple, some in the industry think that it will be hard to compete with prices alone.

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