The Financial Times is reporting that the three European carriers have signed on with Apple to carry the iPhone in certain European countries. At this time, T-Mobile Germany, Orange in France and O2 in the UK have come to terms with Apple. In exchange for exclusivity in those respective countries, the carriers have agreed to share revenues from iPhone calls and data transfers with Apple. This agreement where a handset manufacturer gets a direct share of a mobile operator’s revenues is a first for handset manufacturers.
The agreements should be formally announced at the IFA trade fair in Berlin which runs from August 31 to September 5.
The iPhone rollout will continue in 2008 in other European countries as well as Asia.