Friday, February 29, 2008 -- 12:07 p.m. -- on my couch

WANT DAILY IPTIB TEXT ALERTS? TEXT IPHONE TO 25808 

**UPDATED WITH QUOTES FROM O2 IRELAND CEO.**

Just wanted to let all the readers in Ireland and elsewhere know that I'll be following up soon on some of the most burning questions concerned iPhone Ireland -- from the lack of visual voicemail to the high tariffs to the limited data plans.

I now have a contact at O2 Ireland who is currently getting me some answers. With the time difference I may not hear anything back before Monday, but the wheels are in motion.

It's interesting to note the prices in Ireland ... very different from the U.K. for example.

The entry level tariff includes 175 minutes and 100 SMS messages for €45 a month. If you do some quick conversion that's about £34 in the U.K. Difference is that in the U.K. for that price you get 600 minutes and 500 SMS message. So clearly there's a discrepancy. That's not to mention of course the visual voicemail and free Wi-Fi access at Cloud hotspots that is not included in Ireland.

And according to Independent.ie, O2 Ireland isn't apologizing for the fact that the Irish iPhone will cost more than any other.
"You can't compare it with other products," Danuta Gray, O2 Ireland CEO said yesterday. "Comparing it with a standard handset is just not like-for-like. I have music on it, videos on it, DVDs, photo albums, camera. To me it's just an amazing device and I think the type of price here compared with this type of functionality is where the value should be judged."

No question that it's an amazing device, but there's one thing Gray may be underestimating. First off, she confirmed that the network won't accept unlocked phones ... but with Ireland being late to the game and everyone knowing the price outside of Ireland, consumers may be more interested in giving O2 the business instead of their business.

Is O2 in for a backlash? Will Visual Voicemail and unlimited data ever come to the Emerald Isle?

These and other burning questions ... tackled ... answered ... next time on iPTIB.

Anyone out there in the studio audience have any questions? Let me know ... I'll get the answers for you.

Thanks for calling.

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With all this talk about welcoming Ireland to the excitement of iRingy-Dingy, sure sounds like the next blog article will be an announcement of a "Special iPTIB Excursion to Ireland" hosted by our one and only iPTIB RedEye. Get out your maps, reserve the flight, and organize some day trips on Isle of Ire. Gotta go - have to get a Passport now.

SCOTT'S REPLY: If any of my bosses are reading this comment, Wes has a great idea. I'll just need about 21 days or so to really appreciate Ireland's beautiful countryside.

I have said many times over the last several months that I will buy an iPhone as soon as they come to Ireland. Having seen the tariffs I am wavering and will almost certainly NOT buy one straight away. O2 Ireland are profiteering and I feel like crying. Ms. Gray may justify the cost of the handset by pointing out it's features - and I'd agree - but she cannot justify the tariff this way. Is she not embarrassed by the UK comparison? I'd like to hear a full justification of the difference in tariffs between Northern Ireland and the Republic. The media here frequently report that Irish telcos make more per mobile user than anywhere else and it's simply that the prices are so much higher. We have an expression: "Rip-Off Ireland" which you will experience if you can swing your "Special Excursion". Meanwhile I may just wait for 3G and better tariffs.

SCOTT'S REPLY: I actually have a request into media relations at O2 Ireland to talk about the very things you are talking about here and hopefully I hear something back soon, Alistair.

Thanks Scott. I forgot something. International roaming, especially data charges. I know this is not specifically an iPhone issue, but iPhone users are in danger of being stung with massive bills when they travel. In Europe, O2 (and their owner Telefonica) have a presence in most countries - how can they justify the enormous charges? It seems that they are simply going to continue "getting away with it" until the EU forces them to be more reasonable.

SCOTT'S REPLY: I hear you, Alistair. I'm hoping to hear from O2 Ireland tomorrow and I'll ask whatever I can. Thanks for bringing this important topic up.

When is Visual Voicemail coming to Ireland? When are we going to get given a more generous allocation of minutes and texts for our high tariffs, as happened in the UK?

SCOTT'S REPLY: o2 Ireland said they were examining visual voicemail and would know more in the future -- they seemed very uninterested in prices in the UK, comparing the prices of other services in Ireland. Sadly, that's a poor way to do it, I think.

hi I was just wondering if u know how to get delivery reports on the iPhone on o2?

SCOTT"S REPLY: Hi, Kerri. Do you mean delivery reports as in when you send a text that it tells you it went through? Unfortunately, that's not an available option, and I miss it! I loved it on my old phone and was surprised to see that it's not there.

If you are talking about something else, let me know what you mean.

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