German iPhone gets 1,000 enquiries daily

Reuters

Germany
‘s biggest Apple retailer is
getting 1,000 enquiries every day about buying the new iPhone, which is
expected to go on sale towards the end of the year, the retailer’s head told a
newspaper.

“Fifty-seven
thousand interested people have already registered with us,” the head of
retailer Gravis, Archibald Horlitz, told

Germany’s Tagesspiegel in comments
due to be published on Friday. “Every day, we get about 1,000 more.”

Horlitz
said almost 58 percent of those interested in buying the much-hyped iPhone —
which incorporates an iPod music player, Web browser and email software — said
they would consider switching operators if necessary.

Vodafone,
T-Mobile and O2 have all been named in media speculation as likely candidates
to get an exclusive or shared deal to sell the iPhone.

Horlitz
said he expected Gravis would also be allowed to sell the iPhone in its 29
German branches. “I assume that we’ll be part of it,” he said.

Apple

Germany was not
immediately reachable for comment. Apple has declined to reveal any details
regarding how it plans to sell the iPhone in
Europe.

The iPhone
went on sale for the first time in the

United States on June 29 and
analysts estimate up to 700,000 were sold in the first weekend. In the

United States,
the iPhone is exclusively available through operator AT&T.

(Additional
reporting by Jens Hack)