New iPhones make official debut here
Customers form long lines to buy the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus, at KT Olleh Square in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul, Friday morning when the new Apple handsets officially debuted here. / Yonhap
By Lee Min-hyung
The much-hyped new iPhones have officially debuted in Korea, with hundreds of avid fans forming long lines at some major retail stores to be the first to have one.
The nation’s three major mobile carriers said Friday they have launched the iPhone 6S and iPhones 6S Plus through their retail stores.
Office worker Oh Won-taek, 29, was the first to grab an iPhone 6S, at Frisbee, a certified Apple reseller, in Myeongdong, central Seoul.
“I came on Thursday at 8 a.m. to use the device for the first time in the nation,” he said after receiving an iPhone 6S.
The top-three telcos ― SK Telecom, KT and LG Uplus ― held special events to celebrate the official release of the devices, aiming to attract more customers.
SK Telecom said it held a special lottery for the first 100 subscribers.
The iPhone 6S is available from 869,000 won ($796), based on storage capacity, while the iPhone 6S Plus starts at 999,000 won.
The release came about a month after the phones went on sale in the United States. But Korea was excluded from the first wave of launch countries.
On Monday, the three carriers started receiving orders for the devices. Backed by Apple’s strong fan base here, orders sold out in 10 minutes.
Orders were scheduled to start from Oct. 16, but were delayed. This sparked speculation that the Korea Communications Commission, the nation’s telecom watchdog, advised carriers not to take orders during the weekend over concerns of overheated market competition. Before the government enacted subsidy cap laws in October last year, carriers had often offered illegal subsidies to lure customers from rivals.
To gain an upper hand in the high-end handset markets, Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics reduced the price of their flagship models early this month. Samsung’s Galaxy S6 smartphone was priced at 858,000 won, but the company lowered it to 779,900 won a week before the start of iPhone orders.
On Oct. 1, LG Electronics launched its new flagship model, the V10, at a relatively cheap 799,700 won, which analysts said was a move to gain ground against rivals, including the iPhone 6S.