Race on for iPhone 7 Entry

Sixteen Iranian companies have informed Iran’s Telecommunications Guild that they have submitted orders for importing iPhone 7, the guild’s director said.

Speaking to Financial Tribune, Gholam Karimi added that these companies have not yet been able to forge a deal with Apple Inc., but they are still negotiating with the US-based company.

Earlier, Yadollah Sadeqi, an official with Iran’s Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade, said US sanctions bar American corporate entities from entering the Iranian economy or partnering with local businesses.

“Therefore, Apple Inc. cannot designate an official representative in Iran, but there is no ban on the legal import of the company’s products to Iran [from Iran’s side],” Sadeqi said.

Karimi said Datis Emertat, Media Pardazesh, Arvand, Delta Commerce Company, Smart Golden Apple, Manatel Pars, Iranian Qaem, Elixir Saba (Mahtel) Commerce Company and Almas System, which are among the 16 companies stated above, have been authorized by the Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade to import iPhone 7.

“All companies capable of providing after-sales services for the products can submit a request for a license to import smartphones made in the US,” he said.

He noted that there is no limit on the number of companies that can apply for the license.

Asked about the source country from which the smartphone will be imported, Karimi said, “It solely depends on the companies’ preference and neither the guild nor the state has put restrictions over which country the smartphone should be imported from.”

According to the guild’s director, smartphone dealers offering contraband goods will be fined and their shop will be shut down for at least six months.

The official also said smuggled iPhone 7s, which have entered Iran in the past few weeks, will not be registered and mobile phone operators will not provide services to them.

In addition, the website of the guild has stated that selling Apple IDs is banned. The statement also names the vendor to be responsible for the ID’s deactivation.

This is while the website http://appleid24.ir/, which has received the Communications and Information Technology Ministry’s “electronic trust logo”, offers Apple IDs for free while vendors sell them for $2 each.

Three days after the initial sale of the new iPhone started in the US, the new model appeared in Iran’s gray market at exorbitant prices.

Apple launched the sale of iPhone 7 on September 7, which has been priced at between $649 and $849 in the US. This is while Jet Black 256G 7Plus, for instance, is sold in Iran at $1,770.

It has not yet been determined what price the legally imported smartphones will be sold for.

Earlier, Karimi had encouraged mobile phone buyers to use the website epl.irica.ir or the SMS service launched by Iran’s Customs Administration that will help customers identify contraband phones.

The website will provide services based on a phone’s IMEI number—the International Mobile Equipment Identity, or a number that helps identify the serial number of the mobile phones.

The code is usually printed inside the battery compartment of the phone, but can also be displayed on screen on most phones by entering *#06# on the dial pad, or alongside other system information in the settings menu on the operating systems of smartphones.

The IMEI number is used by the administration to identify valid devices and, therefore, can be used for stopping a stolen or illegally imported phone from accessing Iran’s communications network. Therefore, only smartphones and gadgets, which have entered the country through the official customs channel, can be used.

In addition to the website, the agency has developed an SMS system wherein customers can text the serial number to 30008887 and instantly receive a confirmation about whether the phone is contraband or not.

According to a mandate issued recently, all commercial importers of mobile phones are obliged to register the IMEI of their imported goods.