A post-iPhone world

There’s been a lot of ink spilled about Apple’s iPhone. And here’s some more.
Industry pundits have pointed out that the iPhone is like the Paris Hilton of the business industry; the topic has been blanketed by news coverage, and every aspect and angle of the iPhone story has been covered ad nauseam. However, unlike Paris Hilton, the iPhone does deserve the interest it has generated; the device stands as a major event in the wireless industry.
But now, as iPhone owners settle back into their normal lives and the number of iPhone news stories slows to a trickle, it’s time to wonder about what’s next. There are plenty of questions and not many answers.
For example, it took Apple only five months to release an update to its first iPod. The company introduced a $400, 5 GB iPod in November, 2001, and released a 10 GB version in March of 2002. Apple had plenty of impetus to expand its iPod family; the company sold 125,000 of the 5 GB version by the end of 2001.
In April of this year, Apple said it sold 100 million iPods worldwide.
Now, as the iPhone completely eclipses the initial success of the iPod, it’s a good bet that Apple will use a similar strategy to break open the wireless industry. Although the design cycle for a phone/music player likely is longer than a stand-along music player, a 3G iPhone for the holiday season is not completely out of the realm of possibility.
But the real question, the thing that will keep competitors awake at night, is just how an iPhone 2.0 will be released into the market. AT&T Mobility has an exclusive on the iPhone, but will that exclusivity extend to new iPhone iterations? Will Apple target the CDMA market or will it-like Nokia and Sony Ericsson-ignore that extra bit of complexity? Does Apple, always keen on clean and simple business models, even want another U.S. carrier partner? Is AT&T Mobility’s exclusivity permanent?
Indeed, Apple’s unique approach to the wireless market brings everything into question, even practices that are normally considered commonplace: Will AT&T Mobility eventually subsidize the cost of the iPhone? Will Apple agree to such a move? And will AT&T Mobility eventually release the iPhone to its resellers? Will Apple agree to such a move?
The answers will be revealed in time, for sure, but it’s up to the rest of the wireless industry to begin forming its response to the iPhone now, without the benefit of hindsight.
Such are the new realities of this post-iPhone world.