Is the iPhone a PR Fiasco for Rogers?

Ever since Rogers came out with its 3G iPhone plans, it has taken a public relations pounding.

This has seen a wave of negative blog coverage, an online petition that has attracted more than 50,000 people, critical newspaper editorials, a lot of consumers dismissing plans to get an iPhone, and a temper tantrum from Apple, which has decided not to sell the iPhone at its Apple stores in Canada

In response, Rogers has done little. Sure, it’s had a spokesperson available to the media but this has come across as defensive rather than pro-active and creative.

Here’s question: does the criticism and Rogers’ tepid PR approach really matter?

At the end of the day, will the furor over the iPhone simply evaporate? Does Rogers just have to exercise patience until the vocal minority runs out of steam?

The answer is: probably.

In some respects, Rogers made some marketing mistakes about the iPhone, including comments by its CEO, Nadir Mohamed, that prices for smartphones such as the iPhone would “evolve” to take into account mobile Web browsing and multimedia services. Many people took these comments as a sign Rogers was going to offer reasonable iPhone packages.

Unfortunately, their expectations fell short.

In the short-term, Rogers has shot itself in the foot by tempering demand for the iPhone. In the long-term, however, its PR and pricing stumbles probably won’t matter much. People who really want an iPhone – and there are plenty of them – will get one sooner or later.

No doubt, it makes for an entertainment story right now it will likely disappear from the headlines as soon as the next big story comes along.

Technorati Tags: Apple, iPhone, Rogers