After just a month on shelves the HTC First—aka the Facebook Phone—is now just .99 cents. The phone originally retailed for $99.99 with a two-year agreement. It's a surprising move given the phone's huge roll out since its release (remember that weird commercial starring Mark Zuckerberg?). So was it all for nothing?
As Lance Ulanoff reports for Mashable: "To put this in perspective, Apple iPhone and top Android handsets like the Samsung Galaxy S series typically don't see price reductions until new versions are announced or ship from manufacturers ... [a] 99% [discount] after just a month is almost unheard of and smells of Microsoft Kin-level disinterest. That phone, unveiled with much hullabaloo by Microsoft was pretty much dead on arrival and Microsoft quickly switched gears to the more popular Windows Phone platform."
Facebook and HTC, however, said this was a strategic move and not a sign of poor sales. "Promotional pricing is common in the mobile industry. AT&T does promotions like this all the time," an HTC rep said.
[viaMashable]
