In a sign that iPhone may be a threat to OPhone* offerings, China Mobile has launched new ads that take a not so veiled swipe at iPhone. The new ads show China Mobile’s latest smartphone offerings standing proud in a defensive circle (think circle the wagons) against loosely scattered green apples. The implication of the ads? You should stay away from the foreign and sour tasting (green) “apples” and choose a sweet tasting China Mobile 3G handset.
China Mobile showed last month that they were willing to take off the gloves in an effort to mash iPhone sales. Before in store iPhone displays could go up, China Mobile sent “cease and desist” letters to several important Apple/Unicom distribtution partners (e.g. Gome, Suning, D-Phone, et. al.)
*OPhones are China Mobile’s customized TD-SCDMA 3G handsets running OMS, China Mobile’s proprietary operating system. OMS stands for open mobile system, an Android-based OS customized by China Mobile to support their value-added services platform.
Circle the Wagons
Love that one with the lemons on the right… if Apples are sour… and I guess the word “lemon” doesn’t have that connotation in China
It should be noted that although China Mobile is a publicly traded company (including ADR in US market), it is 74% owned by the Communist Party/Chinese government, and their vice-chairman is currently under investigation on corruption charges. Welcome to business in China!