An announcement from China Telcom this week says it added 8.35 million users during the second quarter, an increase it credits mostly to the launch of the iPhone 4S. 
China Telecom said Wednesday that its net income for the second quarter was 4.55 billion yuan, or $716 million, beating analyst expectations of 4.4 billion yuan, according to Bloomberg. China Telecom began offering the iPhone 4S on March 9, ending China Unicom’s exclusive claim to Apple’s smartphone in mainland China.
The carrier expects to see “short-term pressure” on its profit margins and its subsidy costs, because of the popularity of the iPhone, but has projected long-term growth as subscribers come to the carrier because of the iPhone.
The effect of the subsidy costs were not as great as most expected, and China Telcom also saw its average revenue per user increase thanks to the iPhone 4S.
The company has aggressively offered the device to customers fully subsidized with a two-year contract starting at $62 per month, or a three-year contract at $46.
The nation’s largest wireless provider, China Mobile remains on the outside looking in, however market watchers have predicted Apple will offer support for the carrier with their next iPhone.
