Skip to main content

Apple boss hints at lower iPhone prices to fight falling sales

Apple boss Tim Cook has suggested the tech company could lower iPhone prices in some markets in a bid to boost sales.

News of the possible price change came on Tuesday, January 29 as Apple announced iPhone revenue of $51.9 billion for the most recent holiday quarter, marking a 15-percent year-on-year decline.

Apple is considering lowering the cost of its handsets because the strong dollar has made the devices more expensive when converting to local currencies, Cook told Reuters this week.

“As we’ve gotten into January and assessed the macroeconomic condition in some of those markets, we’ve decided to go back to more commensurate with what our local prices were a year ago in hopes of helping the sales in those areas,” the CEO said while declining to offer specific details on new pricing.

Apple posted total revenue of $84.3 billion for the quarter ending December 29, 2018 — a decline of 5 percent from the same quarter a year earlier. It was Apple’s first decline in both revenue and profit in more than a decade.

The confirmed slowdown in iPhone sales had been expected as Tim Cook had already warned investors at the start of January. In a letter published on January 2, the Apple chief cited pressure on the global economy and Apple’s failure to “foresee the magnitude of the economic deceleration, particularly in Greater China” as factors affecting sales, as well as the aforementioned strong dollar. He added that sales had also been hit by customers “taking advantage of significantly reduced pricing for iPhone battery replacements,” which resulted in fewer people upgrading to the latest iPhones.

Notably, there was no mention of the increasing competition from Chinese rivals. Huawei, for example, sold 200 million phones (includes sister brand Honor) in 2018, making it the second biggest smartphone manufacturer globally, with Samsung and Apple placed first and third, respectively. With growing pressure on the global smartphone market, Apple and its rivals clearly face serious challenges to maintain healthy handset sales.

Brighter spots in Apple’s quarterly results included a 19-percent year-on-year rise for revenue from all products and services after excluding the iPhone.

Services revenue, which includes the App Store and Apple Music, reached an all-time high of $10.9 billion, up 19 percent over the previous year. In addition, revenue from Mac computers and wearables increased by 9 percent, with sales of home devices and accessories rising by 33 percent, the company said. Revenue from iPad sales increased by 17 percent on a year earlier, with sales boosted by new additions to its tablet lineup in 2018.

Editors' Recommendations

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
The DOJ has sued Apple over the iPhone. Here’s what it means for you
The Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max and iPhone 14 Pro seen from the back.

Apple iPhone 14 Pro (left) and iPhone 15 Pro Max Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

If you're reading this article, chances are you have an iPhone. It's also quite likely that your friends and family members also use an iPhone. The iPhone is the smartphone of choice for millions of people in the U.S., and now, the Department of Justice (DOJ) is suing Apple over the iPhone monopoly it has established over the years.

Read more
UPS worker accused of nabbing $1.3M worth of iPhones and other Apple gear
A MacBook and iPhone in dark red light.

The desirability and high value of iPhones and other Apple devices make the gear a popular target for criminals looking to make a fast buck.

In the latest such case, a now former UPS employee is accused of stealing more than $1.3 million worth of Apple iPhones and laptops from the shipping company’s warehouse in Winnipeg, Canada, before selling them in an operation that continued for seven months, the Winnipeg Free Press reported this week.

Read more
Apple boss Tim Cook launches charm offensive in vital market
Tim Cook inside an Apple Store in Shanghai.

Apple chief Tim Cook is spending a few days in China, one of the tech company’s most important markets and a major product manufacturing hub.

His visit comes as iPhone sales in the country dropped 24% year-on-year in the first six weeks of 2024, according to data from Counterpoint Research. The slump was attributed to strong competition from local tech firms such as Huawei, although "abnormally high" sales in January 2023 were also a factor.

Read more