China Mobile's iPhone Talks Have Included Steve Jobs

While reports have surfaced claiming that Apple and China Mobile have struck a deal to bring the iPhone to the world's largest mobile phone carrier, the two companies have yet to confirm that such a deal is in place. But according to a new report from Reuters, China Mobile chairman Wang Jianzhou has confirmed that those talks have included Apple CEO Steve Jobs.

The world's largest mobile operator by subscribers said it has met with Apple chief executive Steve Jobs several times on introducing an iPhone based on its home-grown TDSCDMA network standard.

The companies hope to launch an iPhone as soon as possible, China Mobile's Chairman Wang Jianzhou said, without giving any timeframe.

...

"I met Steve Jobs several times already, but we haven't come to an agreement yet," China Mobile's Wang told a news conference. "All I can say is, it's a common wish of China Mobile and Apple to come to an agreement as soon as possible."

Bloomberg also reports that Wang has confirmed that Apple Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook's visit to China Mobile in June was regarding a potential iPhone deal.

white black iphone 4 china
The two companies have reportedly also already struck a deal to develop a future iPhone model based on China Mobile's homegrown 4G TD-LTE standard, a variant of the LTE standard that has been said to not be included in the iPhone 5.

China Unicom is currently the only official iPhone carrier in China, although both China Mobile and China Telecom are said to be working hard to strike deals for the device. China Unicom is apparently not sitting still on its current deal, however, as company executives have reportedly recently traveled to the United States to meet with Apple about the iPhone, potentially securing a deal for the upcoming iPhone 5.

Related Forum: iPhone

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

20 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Monday December 16, 2024 8:55 am PST by
Apple released iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. Apple has added a handful of new non-AI related feature controls as...
iphone 16 apple intelligence

Apple Drops Plans for iPhone Hardware Subscription Service

Wednesday December 18, 2024 11:39 am PST by
Apple is no longer planning to launch a hardware subscription service that would let customers "subscribe" to get a new iPhone each year, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman first shared rumors about Apple's work on a hardware subscription service back in 2022, and at the time, he said that Apple wanted to develop a simple system that would allow customers to pay a monthly fee to gain...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Rumored to Stick With 'Triangular' Camera Design

Wednesday December 18, 2024 2:36 am PST by
Contrary to recent reports, the iPhone 17 Pro will not feature a horizontal camera layout, according to the leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that a source has confirmed that while the appearance of the back of the iPhone 17 Pro has indeed changed, the layout of the three cameras is "still triangular," rather than the "horizontal bar spread on the...
elevation lab airtag battery

Your AirTag's Battery Will Last for Up to 10 Years With Elevation Lab's New TimeCapsule Enclosure

Wednesday December 18, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Elevation Lab today announced the launch of TimeCapsule, an innovative and simple solution for increasing the battery life of Apple's AirTag. Priced at $20, TimeCapsule is an AirTag enclosure that houses two AA batteries that offer 14x more battery capacity than the CR2032 battery that the AirTag runs on. It works by attaching the AirTag's upper housing to the built-in custom contact in the...
apple tv 4k yellow bg feature

New Apple TV Rumored to Launch Next Year With These Features

Tuesday December 17, 2024 9:02 am PST by
The current Apple TV 4K was released more than two years ago, so the streaming device is becoming due for a hardware upgrade soon. Fortunately, it was recently rumored that a new Apple TV will launch at some point next year. Below, we recap rumors about the next-generation Apple TV. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple has been working on its own combined Wi-Fi and...
blackmagic vision pro

Blackmagic Debuts $30K 3D Camera for Capturing Video for Vision Pro

Monday December 16, 2024 4:17 pm PST by
Blackmagic today announced that its URSA Cine Immersive camera is now available for pre-order, with deliveries set to start late in the first quarter of 2025. Blackmagic says that this is the world's first commercial camera system designed to capture 3D content for the Vision Pro. The URSA Cine Immersive camera was first introduced in June, but it has not been available for purchase until...
mac pro creativity

Apple Launched the Controversial 'Trashcan' Mac Pro 11 Years Ago Today

Thursday December 19, 2024 7:00 pm PST by
Apple launched the controversial "trashcan" Mac Pro eleven years ago today, introducing one of its most criticized designs that persisted through a period of widespread discontentment with the Mac lineup. The redesign took the Mac Pro in an entirely new direction, spearheaded by a polished aluminum cylindrical design that became unofficially dubbed the "trashcan" in the Mac community. All of ...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature

'iPhone 17 Air' With 'Major' Design Changes and 19-Inch MacBook Detailed in New Report

Sunday December 15, 2024 9:47 am PST by
Apple is planning a series of "major design" and "format changes" for iPhones over the next few years, according to The Wall Street Journal's Aaron Tilley and Yang Jie. The paywalled report published today corroborated the widely-rumored "iPhone 17 Air" with an "ultrathin" design that is thinner than current iPhone models. The report did not mention a specific measurement, but previous...

Top Rated Comments

troop231 Avatar
174 months ago
If Apple releases an iPhone on China Mobile, Apple's marketshare is going to skyrocket.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hamean Avatar
174 months ago
Jobs is a driven guy. I'm not being critical - it's how he got Apple to where it is today.

I just hope he is not totally sacrificing his health by his continued active involvement in company affairs. I know someone else is supposed to be handling day-to-day operations - but Jobs still very involved.

I know it's his baby, but I'm not sure it's worth dying for.

He is who he is. He'll work until he can't, because he loves it. We all die some time. Staying active can help your mental approach when you are ill, and attitude is one of the most important factors in survival. Death is coming for us all.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
miles01110 Avatar
174 months ago
I wonder how much data Apple will be forced to share with the Chinese government.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mave1969 Avatar
174 months ago
Whats up with the status bar clock in those iphone images, China gets a different clock?
Um, I think you'll find those are, like, Chinese characters in front of the numbers.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Gav2k Avatar
174 months ago
Hold on to your shares people there about to double!
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
entatlrg Avatar
174 months ago
Jobs is a driven guy. I'm not being critical - it's how he got Apple to where it is today.

I just hope he is not totally sacrificing his health by his continued active involvement in company affairs. I know someone else is supposed to be handling day-to-day operations - but Jobs still very involved.

I know it's his baby, but I'm not sure it's worth dying for.

The man has my respect that's for sure.
Score: 0 Votes (Like | Disagree)