Harvard Business professor David Yoffie told USA Today that all the media attention surrounding Apple’s iPhone has so far generated $400 million in free publicity for Apple.
“No other company has ever received that kind of attention for a product launch,” said Yoffie.
Gizmodo’s Mark Wilson questions the validity of that claim. “I doubt that the iPhone announcement drew society’s attention more than, say, RCA’s first color television or Phillips’ first VCR,” said Wilson.
I’m with Gizmodo on this one. $400 million by today’s standards is not all that much. Wilson points out that Gizmodo’s iPhone coverage alone generated at least $200 million.