Deutsche Telekom lands iPhone licence for Germany

T-Mobile, the mobile arm of German telecommunications giant Deutsche Telekom, has beaten rival Vodafone in the battle to win the marketing rights for Apple's iPhone in Germany, the regional daily Rheinische Post reported on Wednesday.

T-Mobile snapped the contract from under the nose of Vodafone, which had been widely regarded as the favourite to win the exclusive German marketing rights, and will offer the iPhone at a price of 450 euros from November 1, the newspaper said, quoting company sources.

T-Mobile declined to comment on the information.

The iPhone was launched last week in the United States amid analyst reports that sales of new trendy gadget easily rocketed past 300,000.

Apple shares were up nearly five percent, going for 127.17 dollars a piece when the New York Stock Exchange closed on Tuesday.

Investors were evidently reacting to reports from analysts that from 310,000 to 700,000 iPhones have been snapped up since the devices began selling on Friday and that the profit margin on the product is estimated at 55 percent.

Apple and US telecom giant ATT, the exclusive iPhone service provider, did not disclose sales figures "for competition reasons."