Apple is set to sell its one billionth iPhone sometime this summer, with Wall Street analysts predicting it’ll take place in July.
To mark the momentous occasion, I’d love to see Apple offer something to the billionth iPhone customer. After all, it’s not the first time the company has done (or in one case planned to do) such a thing…
In the past, Apple has often offered prizes for the customers who help it pass landmark sales milestones. For instance, the 10 billionth, 25 billionth and 50 billionth iOS app downloads saw Apple offer a $10k gift card for the App Store. Apple offered similar prizes for the 100 millionth, 1 billionth and 10 billionth iTunes Music Store downloads.
The prize which truly sticks in my mind, however, was one which unfortunately never happened. For the one millionth iMac purchase, Steve Jobs wanted to dress up as Willy Wonka from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory — complete with top hat and tails — and fly out the winning customer for a personal tour of Apple’s HQ.
Sadly it never took place — but it wasn’t down to Steve. Apparently, California law dictates that such competitions must allow for entry without someone making a purchase, which kind of defeated the whole point.
Regardless, if there’s a way Apple was able to get around this ruling (or if it’s changed in the intervening years), it would be great to see Apple pull the stops out to mark this major milestone. Heck, Tim Cook’s auctioned off a lunch date with himself before, while Jony Ive has designed one-off products for charity auctions.
Surely it would be possible to up the ante for the billionth iPhone.
What would you like to see Apple do to mark the occasion? Leave your comments below.
