Chunghwa Telecom Claims To Have Inked Taiwan iPhone Deal

The battle to bring the iPhone to Taiwan became a bit more crowded as that Asian nation’s top carrier announced it will start selling iPhone service “before the end of the year.”

December is the tentative launch date for exclusive sales deal, Digitimes reported Monday.

In a brief statement released over the weekend, Chunghwa Telecom said it “has signed a contract with Apple, and it will provide third-generation iPhone services in Taiwan before the end of the year,” according to the Dow Jones News service.

IPhones from New Zealand, Hong Kong and the U.S. have been streaming into Taiwan. The 8GB version, for instance sells for between $667 to $755.

Although reports Monday described the Chunghwa deal as “exclusive,” last week another Taiwan carrier also claimed to have signed a pact with Apple for iPhone rights.

True Move, described as the country’s third-largest cell phone carrier, said “in the coming months” it would distribute iPhones, according to Reuters.

Has Apple granted an exclusive deal to Chungwha? So far, Apple has not responded to Cult of Mac requests for comment.

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China Mobile ‘Still Interested’ In iPhone

Interest over Taiwan comes as activity between Apple and China seems to have thawed somewhat. Friday, Apple advertised for an iPhone engineer in Beijing. Apple’s Steve Jobs has said he hoped to have the iPhone in Russian and China by the end of 2008.

In October, Cupertino signed an agreement with Russia, but talks have stalled over China’s requirement for its home-grown TD-SCDMA, a sticking point that could force the iPhone to be released without Wi-Fi or 3G in the world’s largest market.

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