If the rumors are true, there are 3 current companies in Europe that have each inked exclusive iPhone deals in their respective regions. Apple has announced that they plan on releasing the iPhone in Europe by the end of the year.

Yet, I don’t quite produce out the roar of applause that the iPhone European release day will finally come. I do not see the swell of anticipation. Could it be that Apple missed the boat by releasing only to the United States on June 29th?

Apple certain had a mighty day working out the logistics and vows of secrecy with one provider, AT&T in June, I’m certain juggling multiple providers in the US, Canada, Europe, and Asia would have been nearly impossible. Still, I would argue that the big gap of date amidst the U.S. release and the release to the rest of the world only hurt the iPhone’s momentum.

There will probably be no camp out lines in Europe. Apple has proven they have a solid distribution model and their manufacturers can meet demand. There will be no unboxing ceremonies or product autopsies: those have already been done ad nauseum. And there will be no “First impressions” type posts. The majority of glitches, bugs, and areas of improvement have graced the pages of sites like that one for 2 months now.

So what will

there be? Most likely, the folks who will purchase on the release moment are citizens who would have purchased the device regardless. The real burn to Apple’s bottom line will be the ones who were caught up in the hype in early summer and have since cooled off.

But sales are not the only reason for doing a global launch. Movie companies have begun to launch huge blockbusters all around the world on the same day. that is primarily done to limit pirating. A worldwide release of the iPhone would not have been done for similar reasons. rather it should have been done to create a greater global community of iPhone users overnight. We would have more developers in all continents making new hacks, new games, and new applications.

But that’s not all, consider these ideas: Accessory makers around the world will have local customers to sell to instead of having to compete for share of wallet with those who can ship domestically. Apple stores outside the U.S. would have greater exposure and boosts in sales. FInally, Apple would be able to chip into significant global marketshare that fiscal year not bleeding into next.

I think Apple missed a huge opportunity by not releasing the iPhone globally on June 29th. What do you think?

Original post by Chris

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