Despite the impressive start, Apple’s earnings for the fiscal third quarter ended June 30, 2007
were likely hurt by the iPhone introduction. The company disclosed in their fiscal third quarter
conference call with analysts that total revenue from iPhone sales was only $5 million – an
average of less than $19 per iPhone and an insignificant amount compared to the quarter’s total
net sales across all products and services of over $5.4 billion (Exhibit 3). During the question
and answer portion of the call, the company disclosed that the “vast majority” of reported
iPhone revenue was due to the sale of accessories – not the phones themselves. Further, the
company had expensed other operating costs related to the iPhone including R&D, Sales and
Marketing. These latter costs were unusually high before and during the launch period because
of a large increase in advertising and extra staffing in customer support and in Apple’s online
and physical stores. There seemed little doubt that iPhone-related operating expenses
amounted to far more than the $5 million of reported revenue. The seeming disconnect
between the iPhone’s widely touted launch success and its apparently poor initial financial
performance was likely due to Apple’s revenue recognition policy for the iPhone called
‘subscription’ accounting.