Bharti Airtel has stated that it is not making any profits on the iPhone 3G. The mobile phone is sold at the prices fixed by Apple, while Airtel enjoys the subscription from the network users. This statement came after the controversy of the price, which is about Rs31 000 (720US$) for the 8GB version and Rs 36 100  (840US$) for the 16GB version, close to the upcoming Nokia N96.

The network's users were upset by the hefty pricing, as they had learned that in the USA, the iPhone 3G would sell for about 199US$, far lower than the price in India, which reciprocates to Vodafone as well. Even with such a high price, over 200 000 iPhone 3Gs have already been booked, although they are unconfirmed bookings.

Sanjay Kapoor, president, mobility, Bharti Airtel explains that the reason why the iPhone 3G is so expensive in India on their network is that the "model does not work as majority of users are pre-paid and even post-paid subscribers do not sign any commitment with the carrier," unlike US carriers.

Airtel will be bundling a 500MB data bundle every month for 12 months so that it can justify the price. The phone will be sold in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai and Kolkata, from today, and in 65 other cities from tomorrow.

[via Cellpassion]