O2’s iPhone Paddy Tax
Pat Phelan: Irish taken as fools as O2 Ireland iPhone package comes with attached “Paddy Tax”
Irish company Cubic Telecom today blasted the prices that people will have to pay for the iPhone when it’s introduced in Ireland on March 14th. Cubic Telecom CEO Pat Phelan, speaking on the packages said:
“There is no excuse for paying such high prices and getting so little in return. The minutes, the text bundles and the data package are completely inappropriate for Irish people and the massive difference in what Irish and UK and Northern people get for the same price suggests that they’ll throw any old scraps at the stupid Paddys. â€Phelan is calling for a boycott of the phone until o2 rethinks their charges. “It’s time for us Irish to tell O2 we’re not going to accept this. We have Apple’s European HQ here in Ireland, the iPhone itself is fantastic but there’s no way we should buy this phone until O2 cops on and looks after their very loyal customers here. We should get the equivalent package they’re getting in the UK and Northern Ireland
Too fucking right. I don’t even want an iPhone – I just want affordable mobile internet access. Irish consumers are and have been gouged by a mobile network oligopoly in this country for years. It is the giant elephant in the room that everyone knows is there but nobody in power has the balls to do anything about. O2’s latest ‘product’ is yet another “up yours” to us stupid Paddies, our inept government and communications regulator. Hey, we’ve put up with with it for so long, why would anything change now?
A boycott of high end packages like the iPhone plans or broadband dongles won’t work. You’d need to get every soul in the country to stop sending SMS messages in order to get attention of these boyos.

Sounds good to me..as an o2 customer i will only use their free texts on line and made no calls..That way i keep in contact but hurt them inthe pocket..I want the iphone but not as a second class gobshite..COME ON IRELAND..Get organised.
Personally, I am engaged in the age old Irish art of the Boycott. I am Boycotting the iphone on the basis that I am denied a choice of provider. We, ovbiously, have form in Ireland when it comes to Boycotting, so I reckon if we seriously engage, we’ll get the attention of the right people, sure enough.