Beijing shops asking 20,000 yuan for iPhone 6 as Apple waits on permit
Devices have yet to officially go on sale on the mainland, but vendors in Beijing are already selling models they say are real at massive mark-ups
Apple's iPhone 6 has yet to be approved for sale by mainland authorities, but vendors in Beijing are already selling what they claim to be genuine models for more than 20,000 yuan (HK$25,200).
The phones have received regulatory approval for use on domestic frequencies, but still required one more licence before Apple or mainland telecoms players could sell the device, Xinhua reported yesterday.
Apple has not said when the smartphone will be released on the mainland, one of its biggest markets. The delay has triggered speculation the technology giant has run into difficulty getting permits from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, which tests phones before they can be used on telecoms networks.
Apple still needed to obtain a network access licence, Xinhua said.
The company has not issued any comment about the mainland launch apart from saying it was working to bring the device to the market as soon as possible.
However, state media have reported dealers in Beijing claim to have already sold out of the model at a huge markup.
Sellers in the Zhongguancun district of Beijing, the city's main centre for buying computers and phones, said they had sold out within two days, at an average price of 14,000 yuan, China News Services reported.
The 16GB version is retailing for HK$5,588 in Hong Kong through the Apple store.
Dealers refused to say where the smartphones came from or how they had obtained them, the report said.
Some vendors told the South China Morning Post they did have some in stock, but with only a few remaining. Others said they would have to source them from elsewhere in the capital.
One vendor said he had a few models of the 16BG version in different colours, and was selling them for 17,000 yuan.
"The phones are from Australia. There are only a few left and they are very expensive," he said. "You'd better pre-order them from me now … The prices have gone crazy with all the hype. A guy bought an iPhone 6 from me for more than 20,000 yuan two days ago."
Another vendor said he only had one device remaining and wanted 22,000 yuan for it. He said the phone came from Hong Kong, but he would only show it after the money had been paid.
