O2 UK and European mobile phone retailer Carphone Warehouse have clinched the long-awaited deal to bring Apple Iphone to Britain.
The phone, which combines its popular Ipod music player, a video player and Web browser, will be sold through O2, Carphone Warehouse and Apple stores in Britain for £269 from November 9th.
The deal with O2, part of Spanish telecoms giant Telefonica, was described as exclusive and "multi-year". Customers will sign up for an 18-month contract on a tariff of either £35, £45 or £55, said Matthew Key, chief executive of O2 UK.
Shares in Telefonica were up almost 1 per cent at €18.9, while shares in Carphone were down 0.3 per cent at £3.49.
Apple is also expected to hand a German Iphone distribution deal to Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile and a French deal to France Telecom's Orange later this week.
Although Iphones flew off the shelves when they first went on sale amid much fanfare in the United States in late June, Apple cut the price of its $599 model to $399 last week, sending its stock falling on market concerns that sales were slowing.
Apple CEO Steve Jobs attempted to calm angry customers who had paid the top price by offering them a $100 store credit.