All three Russian telcos stop selling iPhone
All three major Russian cellcos have stopped selling the iPhone, the most dramatic instance so far in a rising tide of operator backlash against Apple's tough contractual requirements. VimpelCom has severed its ties with the handset provider, following in the footsteps of MTS and MegaFon. VimpelCom says it has put Samsung at the top of its list of smartphones to promote under its BeeLine brand.
According to PhoneArena, VimpelCom blamed "draconian contracts" and "harsh conditions... especially in the marketing department" for its decision to dump the iPhone and sign a new deal with Samsung.
The iPhone is still available in Russia via Apple's own online stores, which it has been expanding recently in the face of carrier hostility, and from some local operators, and non-cellco affiliated stores. However, the big three are by far the biggest channel to market for smartphones. Russia has over 180m mobile subscribers and the three main operators control 80% of them.
