Chronology of rumors about the iPhone since 1999
Apple's marketing strategy is absolute closeness. This firm never reveals its plans for the future. Moreover, she even prosecutes bloggers who are trying to find out and publish these plans.
Naturally, such a policy creates the most favorable ground for spreading rumors. Probably, most often these rumors appear on their own, circulating among the huge audience of Apple fans, but sometimes the intensity and the apparent focus of the rumors suggests that Apple marketers had a hand in their appearance. Modern specialists do not need to be taught how this is done: it is enough to organize an “accidental” leak of information.
The history of the iPhone is quite instructive. The fact is that rumors about this mythical product have been going on for seven years. Throughout this long term, Apple fans are looking forward to a “quick release” of a mobile phone from their favorite company. Chronology of rumors about the iPhone from 1999 to the present day can be studied as a textbook of hidden marketing.
December 14, 1999
Apple registers the domain name www.iphone.org , which still exists and redirects visitors to the main page of the corporate website.
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April 16, 2001
Infosync publishes the first photo of the mythical iPhone.
July-August 2002
Steve Jobs, director of the company, answering the question about the possible release of a PDA under the Apple brand, argues that handheld computers will inevitably evolve into new generation mobile phones, while the PDAs themselves will remain an exceptionally niche product. They have already discussed and solved this issue within the company three years ago. At the same time, the authoritative editions of NYTimes and Wireless Week publish information about plans to release the iPhone, indirect evidence of which are some of the features of the new version of the Macintosh operating system.
September 2002
To a direct question from a journalist about whether the company is going to release an iPhone, Steve Jobs refused to answer . He said that Apple’s corporate policy prohibits discussing products that are not officially announced. At the same time , new photos of the mythical iPhone appeared on the Internet and a new wave of discussion about how long the author painted them in Photoshop.
October-December 2002
Apple registers the “iPhone” trademark in Singapore and the UK . Later similar applications are filed in Australia (December 2002) and Canada (October 2004).
December 16, 2004
Apple announces mobile phone development in partnership with Motorola. The release of the device with support for the mobile version of iTunes is scheduled for the first half of 2005.
March 2006
A search in the US Patent Office database revealed an Apple patent, which describes the technology of access to databases from mobile devices. The patent text mentions mobile phones. At the same time, there are fairly credible rumors about the difficulties Apple is experiencing in connection with the development of the iPhone. According to this information, the company seeks to create a fundamentally new phone from scratch, without using existing design standards and the usual form factors. According to experts, such a revolutionary phone can not appear on the market before 2007.
April 2, 2006
Insiders report that Apple is having trouble choosing an iPhone chipset .
September 2006
A new wave of rumors about the iPhone is rolling in, which is growing every day. Analysts from various analytical companies predict how many copies of the iPhone Apple will be able to sell during the year. Called numbers from 10 million to 12 million.
October 23, 2006
The new mobile phone model Motorola Rokr, similar in design to the iPod ( photo ), is rumored to not support the work with the music iTunes, but instead will be compatible with a competitor from Real Networks. According to analysts, this may indicate Apple will soon enter the mobile phone market.
November 16, 2006
The Taiwanese press reports that Apple has already ordered 12 million copies of the iPhone from the Taiwanese subcontractor Hon Hai Precision Industry, and the release of the multimedia device will take place in the first half of 2007.
November 21, 2006
An analyst at American Technology Research reports that Apple has already begun work on a second version of the iPhone with more advanced messaging features.
November 30, 2006
Kevin Rose, the founder of Digg, got drunk with beer and claimed that he had information: iPhone will be available in versions with 4 GB and 8 GB of memory for $ 249 and $ 449, respectively ( video ).
December 15, 2006
A message appears on the Gizmodo website that the iPhone is guaranteed to enter the market on Monday, December 18, and "this is not at all what we expected."
December 18, 2006
On Monday, December 18, there was an official announcement of the iPhone from Linksys (a division of Cisco). This VoIP enabled device has no connection with Apple. Cisco has owned the “iPhone” trademark since 2000, when Infogear, which registered the trademark in 1996, was bought. Gizmodo spoke about this device a few days ago.
Well, maybe the Apple iPhone never comes out at all ? In any case, in the US, this mobile phone should have a different name.
Naturally, such a policy creates the most favorable ground for spreading rumors. Probably, most often these rumors appear on their own, circulating among the huge audience of Apple fans, but sometimes the intensity and the apparent focus of the rumors suggests that Apple marketers had a hand in their appearance. Modern specialists do not need to be taught how this is done: it is enough to organize an “accidental” leak of information.
The history of the iPhone is quite instructive. The fact is that rumors about this mythical product have been going on for seven years. Throughout this long term, Apple fans are looking forward to a “quick release” of a mobile phone from their favorite company. Chronology of rumors about the iPhone from 1999 to the present day can be studied as a textbook of hidden marketing.
December 14, 1999
Apple registers the domain name www.iphone.org , which still exists and redirects visitors to the main page of the corporate website.
')
April 16, 2001
Infosync publishes the first photo of the mythical iPhone.
July-August 2002
Steve Jobs, director of the company, answering the question about the possible release of a PDA under the Apple brand, argues that handheld computers will inevitably evolve into new generation mobile phones, while the PDAs themselves will remain an exceptionally niche product. They have already discussed and solved this issue within the company three years ago. At the same time, the authoritative editions of NYTimes and Wireless Week publish information about plans to release the iPhone, indirect evidence of which are some of the features of the new version of the Macintosh operating system.
September 2002
To a direct question from a journalist about whether the company is going to release an iPhone, Steve Jobs refused to answer . He said that Apple’s corporate policy prohibits discussing products that are not officially announced. At the same time , new photos of the mythical iPhone appeared on the Internet and a new wave of discussion about how long the author painted them in Photoshop.
October-December 2002
Apple registers the “iPhone” trademark in Singapore and the UK . Later similar applications are filed in Australia (December 2002) and Canada (October 2004).
December 16, 2004
Apple announces mobile phone development in partnership with Motorola. The release of the device with support for the mobile version of iTunes is scheduled for the first half of 2005.
March 2006
A search in the US Patent Office database revealed an Apple patent, which describes the technology of access to databases from mobile devices. The patent text mentions mobile phones. At the same time, there are fairly credible rumors about the difficulties Apple is experiencing in connection with the development of the iPhone. According to this information, the company seeks to create a fundamentally new phone from scratch, without using existing design standards and the usual form factors. According to experts, such a revolutionary phone can not appear on the market before 2007.
April 2, 2006
Insiders report that Apple is having trouble choosing an iPhone chipset .
September 2006
A new wave of rumors about the iPhone is rolling in, which is growing every day. Analysts from various analytical companies predict how many copies of the iPhone Apple will be able to sell during the year. Called numbers from 10 million to 12 million.
October 23, 2006The new mobile phone model Motorola Rokr, similar in design to the iPod ( photo ), is rumored to not support the work with the music iTunes, but instead will be compatible with a competitor from Real Networks. According to analysts, this may indicate Apple will soon enter the mobile phone market.
November 16, 2006
The Taiwanese press reports that Apple has already ordered 12 million copies of the iPhone from the Taiwanese subcontractor Hon Hai Precision Industry, and the release of the multimedia device will take place in the first half of 2007.
November 21, 2006
An analyst at American Technology Research reports that Apple has already begun work on a second version of the iPhone with more advanced messaging features.
November 30, 2006
Kevin Rose, the founder of Digg, got drunk with beer and claimed that he had information: iPhone will be available in versions with 4 GB and 8 GB of memory for $ 249 and $ 449, respectively ( video ).
December 15, 2006
A message appears on the Gizmodo website that the iPhone is guaranteed to enter the market on Monday, December 18, and "this is not at all what we expected."
December 18, 2006
On Monday, December 18, there was an official announcement of the iPhone from Linksys (a division of Cisco). This VoIP enabled device has no connection with Apple. Cisco has owned the “iPhone” trademark since 2000, when Infogear, which registered the trademark in 1996, was bought. Gizmodo spoke about this device a few days ago.
Well, maybe the Apple iPhone never comes out at all ? In any case, in the US, this mobile phone should have a different name.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/4850/
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