Core Group Africa has cautioned Nigerians against buying the newly released models of the iPhone from the grey market in Dubai.
The continent’s official Apple partner has stated that acquiring the iPhone 6 and 6+ from unlicensed sources in Dubai and other countries, would lead to the loss of warranty entitlements and the use of the innovative FaceTime application- an app used for video calls. It has been reportedly wiped from all iPhones sold in the UAE.
“Most grey phones come into the country via Dubai, and in Dubai, FaceTime is not allowed, so these phones cannot be used to communicate with other iPhone, IPad and Mac users over this video link. Furthermore, iPhones brought in via the parallel market do not qualify for warranty,” the official body explained.
Other issues levied against grey market sourced iPhones were mostly centred around pricing and trade-in options.
“Firstly the grey market iPhones imports were already advertised at around N200,000, whereas the likely official price, if judging from the price of the iPhone 5S earlier this year, should be around N135,000.
“Another key point is that Core Group Africa is launching a trade-in program for all officially imported iPhone 6 and 6 plus’s, meaning that they will give Apple customers who buy from official resellers the opportunity to trade in this iPhone next year for a new one, provided it was officially imported.”
The CGA therefore urges Nigerians to wait for the new phone series to hit the country before making any purchases to ensure certified benefits, although they cannot affirm a date or price currently.
As global demand for mobile phones grew, so did the size of the grey markets. Today, it is estimated that over 30 percent of all mobile phones traded will pass through these markets. It is impossible to quantify an exact figure, but sources suggest that as many as 500,000 mobile phones are bought and sold outside of official distribution channels daily. There was a case in 2010 during the launch of the iPhone 4, where international grey market traders bought large quantities at Apple’s retail price then shipped to countries where the product was not available adding a substantial margin to the resale value.
The CGA’s major concern is to enlighten Apple followers about the disadvantages inherent in patronizing grey markets and discourage driving forces behind a heavily active mobile parallel market-currency fluctuations, demand of customers, manufacturer’s policies and price variations.
Quality control regulatory bodies in Nigeria such as Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON), The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) and others have been working on productive measures to curb the shipment of grey products into Nigeria.
