Today I watched a video posted on CNN regarding riots in China because of an Apple store. Consumers and scalpers waited for an extended period of time for the Beijing Apple Store to open its doors. After the 7:00 a.m. time passed, it was announced that the store would not open for the release of the new iPhone 4S.
A big part of the issue is the unlocked nature of the phone. This encouraged scalpers to wait in line and overwhelm individual consumers who wanted to purchase the phone. Scalpers buy iPhones and then resell them at higher prices or ship them to different countries where the iPhone 4 remains unavailable. After hours of waiting and the doors remained locked, security guards and police officers could no longer control the crowd. Reports indicate that some people were led away by force.
Apple has a reputation of people anxiously waiting for the company to open its stores. This is not the first time an Apple store has raised some concerns. Because of the problems, Apple never opened this store and has decided it will not sell the iPhone 4 at the Beijing location because of safety concerns.
Concluding Thoughts
While I have seen other videos and TV reports and read news stories about people waiting in line for stores to open, I am always a bit shocked at the extremes some people go to receive a product. My solution is simple – when you can, buy a device online and avoid the hassle. I realize that may contradict a bit with the Apple Store’s philosophy of providing an experience. However, this is the strategy that Apple will pursue – Consumers living in China who want to purchase iPhone 4s will have to buy them from the online store or authorized resellers.
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