As the Fortune 2.0 blog notes,
In a report to clients issued a few hours before Apple's announcement, [Gene] Munster [of analysts Piper Jaffray, who follows Apple closely] had estimated that Apple had sold about 425,000 iPhones worldwide and that it would take Apple at least 17 days to hit the one million mark.
But instead the magic number came up in just three days. How's that happen, then?
One explanation for the discrepancy may have to do with how Apple counts sales. Sales at Apple Stores are recorded at the register. But sales to its partners — in this case, AT&T and the overseas carriers — are recorded when the devices leave the loading docks in Asia. In other words, some of those 1 million iPhones recorded as sold by Apple (AAPL) may still be in transit.
Indeed, Munster makes the same point in a revised report issued to clients later Monday morning.
But certainly Apple's sales were gigantically faster this time round, as Munster explained: "The improvement is driven by two key factors: 1) international availablilty in 21 countries, and 2) a 60% lower entry-level price point." No argument there. But we'd really like to see some solid numbers from O2 and other partners.
