Apple's recent product introduction of the iPad Air 2 was headlined by "Change is in the Air"
Between the thinness of the device, improvements in processing power, the ability to deal in most mobile environments ...
... Apple has kept a minor but very significant detail very stealthily under wraps.
This is the "just one more thing" announcement that never was.
In the depths of the product details, you will find that this product comes with an "Apple SIM" - a SIM card that is preinstalled.
The potential implications of this are shown in the product shot
where the user will have the ability to choose networks based on their requirements, pricing and availability.
This has the potential to disrupt the mobile operators in a major way. Customers may no longer have to sign up to deals that lock them in for 24 months. The ability to potentially switch easily between service providers must be sending shock waves thru the operator world.
Instead of preloading an iPad with a SIM card, what if the iPhone came preloaded with the "Apple SIM" card? The popularity of the iPhone, with more than 500 million units sold according to June 2014 figures, will force operators to consider their options. It is unlikely that operators will dump Apple in favour of Google, HTC and the likes. Furthermore, Apple has direct access to consumers anyway.
The possibility that consumers will be able to shift preferences is becoming real, with messaging, voicemail, contacts etc already sitting on the Apple SIM.
Even if Apple were not offering Virtual Mobile Operator services, with billing and collection capabilities thru Apple Pay, the user could find him/herself switching the phone in the morning to see which rates are most favourable, and connect to that network. Imagine the simplicity and convenience when travelling.
Currently the offer is only supported in the US (AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile) and the UK (EE).
So when the introduction is headlined by "Change is in the Air" ... they were not kidding.