AT&T will offer its Apple iPhone users insurance for their oh-so-breakable smartphones beginning June 6, according to what appears to be an internal AT&T document acquired by the Boy Genius Report.
Citing a lack of iPhone insurance as a leading source of iPhone-related customer complaints, the document states that the insurance will be called MobileProtect, be offered by Asurion and be available through the Apple App Store for $13.99 a month.
Deductibles will vary based on the purchaser’s iPhone, from $99 for the 8GB iPhone 3G to $199 on a 32GB 3GS. There will be a 30-day enrollment window, seemingly from the time the device is purchased, with the document stating that “eligibility is not retroactive to [AT&T’s] existing iPhone base.”
Describing MobileProtect as “4-peril coverage,” like AT&T’s current Wireless Phone Insurance program for other devices, the document appears to note that MobileProtect will protect against mechanical and electrical issues – post manufacturer’s warranty period and battery life – as well as accidental damage, “liquid damage” and loss or theft.
It appears that the insurance could be a boon for both new iPhone owners who know themselves to be particularly butterfingered – while a $199 deductible isn’t cheap, it’s better than ponying up $699 for a new 3GS – as well as for AT&T. “Asurion owns the risk and P&L, eliminating AT&T risk, development [money] and speeds time to market,” states the document.
On June 7, the day after the insurance offer is expected to debut, Apple will hold its 2010 Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco. Apple CEO Steve Jobs is scheduled to deliver a keynote address at the event and, it’s hoped, will introduce the company’s newest iPhone.
Referred to as the “iPhone 4G,” following a recent debacle in which an Apple engineer left a prototype of the device in a bar, analysts have suggested that Apple could sell as many as 24 million of the new iPhones in 2010 alone.