Defensive Jobs Hosts iPhone 4 Press Conference

The iPhone 4 “antennagate” scandal has been blown out of proportion, Apple CEO Steve Jobs insisted when he took the stage at an Apple press conference held today to address complaints about the device.

Users report dropped calls and weakened signals when holding the phone a certain way. Jobs countered that more than 3 million iPhone 4s were sold in the three weeks since the iPhone 4 launched, and that it’s received the highest customer satisfaction rating of any iPhone or any smart phone, Engadget reports.

Antenna problems are a challenge faced by the whole wireless industry, Jobs says, as he pointed to alleged similar flaws with the BlackBerry Bold 9700, HTC Droid Eris and Samsung Omnia II.

Jobs also acknowledged that iPhones use a faulty algorithm to calculate signal strength. But even the updated algorithm in a forthcoming software update will show a signal strength decrease when the phone is held the wrong way.

But the degradation is slight, Jobs maintains: The iPhone 4 drops one more call per 100 than the iPhone 3GS. Only 0.55% of iPhone 4 users have called AppleCare to report signal degradation, and 1.7% of iPhone 4s have been returned – a decrease from the 6% of iPhone 3GSs returned.

Apple will attempt to combat the negative publicity by giving away free cases to mitigate the antenna problem and issue refunds to users who bought the cases proactively. Users can also return the iPhone 4 for a full refund (and no restocking fee) within 30 days of purchase. Jobs indicated he thinks AT&T will refund money spent on its service contracts when users return iPhone 4s.

Here’s the bottom line for enterprises: There’s no fundamental need for a change in direction for any enterprise evaluating the merits of deploying the iPhone to its user community, according to Telwares’ mobility experts.

The issues and challenges faced by some end users on the iPhone are not drastically different than any other brand, carrier or platform. The same measured approach to deploying any enterprise technology still applies and is not altered based on the data available today.

Telwares instructs enterprise organizations that have already deployed the iPhone 4 to closely scrutinize their commercial agreements with AT&T to determine device support from multiple channels, how they can approach implementing the remedies Apple has outlined with minimal business interruption and the contractual implications where the need to terminate specific services exists.

AT&T / CWA Contract Expiration and Potential Strike – Update

Update Sunday: Negotiations are continuing past the strike deadline. According to various statements by the CWA and AT&T, the two sides remain focused on wages, health care costs, and job security. More detail will be posted as appropriate. Telwares maintains:

SUMMARY OF ISSUE:
•On April 4th 2009, a series of five regional union contracts will expire between AT&T and the Communications Workers of America affecting 112,000 employees. A sixth contract due to expire later this year is also in scope.
•Members of the CWA have ratified a strike if negotiations are unsuccessful.
•AT&T is seeking concessions related to active and retired employee health benefits, essentially sharing more of the burden with employees.
•The CWA is seeking to finalize a variety of wage issues and mitigate the AT&T position on sharing more of the medical costs.
•AT&T has been preparing for several months to accommodate a strike by training non‐bargained employees for assignment throughout the organization.
TELWARES PERSPECTIVE:
While a strike would clearly put a strain on AT&T’s resources, we do not believe this will materially affect continuing operations within AT&T in the short term. The Telwares concern for existing clients and prospects grows larger if a strike were to happen and extend for more than a few weeks. At that point, we believe there could be real jeopardy for clients relating to account support, service provisioning/troubleshooting, and network implementations/migrations.
KEY ENTERPRISE CONSIDERATIONS:
•Contractual risk mitigation ‐ how are labor disputes handled in your contract(s) and is there remedy available to you if needed? The majority of AT&T agreements to address labor disputes as part of Force Majeure language – due diligence is required.
•Account maintenance and support ‐ if resources are stretched within AT&T, what is the contingency plan specific to your relationship with them, in practical terms?
•SLA delivery ‐ what provisions are wrapped around the SLA’s in your contracts, and again, are there sufficient remedies in place if service were to degrade?
•Implementation and/or migration of new services ‐ if new services are planned or in‐flight, what is the contingency plan to accomplish the transaction? What remedy is available to your organization?
oIn addition, there may be implied delays in contract negotiations or legal review/approval process due to any labor dispute. This should be challenged aggressively.