In case you didn’t read every riveting word of Dan’s groundbreaking coverage of Apple’s Q2 2007 financial results (and why wouldn’t you? he’s really quite sensitive about it), one of the highlights from the call was this little tidbit:
More on Apple TV and iPhone strategy for accounting. Talking up the spiffyness of the iPhone, but nothing new on features. “New software features and new applications” due to be incorporated into the iPhone; features will be added at no additional charge (downloadable updates?). Subscription accounting, over 24 months. Now we get into tricky financial lingo on how they will account for those features, but I wonder if this is to avoid Sarbanes-Oxley issues (a la the N-enabler). Report iPhone results will include unit sales for iPhone, iPhone accessories, and payments from AT&T/Cingular.
Similar model in the Apple TV (i.e. downloadable updates). Included in “other music products and services.”
Interpret it how you wish, but I think they’re promising us all a pony with both the iPhone and Apple TV. I don’t know how they’ll deliver the creature through a digital download, but that’s an Apple engineering detail that they should be able to figure out (or else I’ll pout).
More likely the Apple TV will get an update to the final 802.11n once it’s released and the iPhone will get a couple new widgets as time goes on (until the second generation is released and the original is supposedly incapable of supporting them). It doubt it will nearly as exciting as we all inevitably hope.
Do somebody knows if the iphone in europe have the UMTS-Version with the new features?