[ianl]

Here we go again ...

Little carriers do not have to sell handsets unless they want to. The customer buys the PDA of his choice (one of the most powerful uses of the Internet) and then chooses a SIM from the various carrier offerings.

Does this work ? Oh yes. I live/work in a country which has a number of carriers competing without the need for "exclusivity", although one can buy cheaply and limit oneself if that's what you want.

Locking in desirable PDA's to limit customer choice may be easy marketing, but it is vomitous. Customers demand choice and flexibility - "exclusivity" is designed exactly to thwart this and lock in profits without working for them.

The very nicest thing about capitalism is the market choice it offers - any marketing ploy (this especially means Apple) that limits that choice deserves to die a ghastly death from lack of patronage.