Softbank to sell iPhone $215 in Japan.

Monday, June 23, 2008 at 10:16 AM | Posted by kazouz

Softbank, Apple’s iPhone carrier in Japan, today announced that it will sell the device for $215, the AP reports.

The iPhone is due to debut in Japan on July 11, with Apple increasing the availability to 20 countries.

Softbank, Japan’s No. 3 mobile phone company, said it will subsidize its subscribers’ mobile phone bills for two years so as to make the cost of the 8-gigabyte iPhone 23,040 yen ($215). The 16-gigabyte version will cost $320.

Whether that will be seen as a discount by Japanese gadget fans is unclear. For years, some mobile phones were practically given away for free as carriers were eager to win market share and earn revenue through phone fees.

But recently, as the Japanese market here has saturated, mobile phones have gone up in price, and the more sophisticated ones can cost about $470. Some can receive digital TV broadcasts, which the iPhone will not.

Apple plans to sell its 8-gigabyte iPhone for $199 in the United States and the 16-gigabyte version for $299. The company says it has sold about 6 million iPhones this year, with a goal of 10 million.