Little by little, the iPhone is making its way to rural America. Today Kentucky’s Bluegrass Cellular and Nex-Tech Wireless of Kansas both announced that they will offer the iPhone 4S starting this month.
“It helps put us on an even playing field with the big guys,” says Corrina Hudsonpillar, marketing supervisor at Nex-Tech Wireless. “Our customers have been asking for it.” Nex-Tech has roaming agreements with 50 other carriers, giving its customers nationwide coverage.
Both carriers will offer all models of the iPhone 4S, with the 8GB retailing for just $49 and the 64GB version selling for $349. The fact that regional carriers are willing to pay the subsidies that Apple is known to require is a clear indication of Apple’s continuing power in the marketplace. Despite the proliferation of high-end Android phones, and the emergence of Windows-based smartphones, many consumers still equate the smartphone with the iPhone.
