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Shoppers eager to get their hands on the iPhone may be able to get it cheaper in France thanks to a loophole in Apple’s rigid sales policy.

In an attempt to maximise profits from its latest device, which goes on sale in Britain today for £269, Apple has struck exclusive country-by-country deals with phone operators.

In the UK consumers who want the phone must use the O2 network and sign an 18-month contract at a minimum of £35 a month.

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An electronic lock on the phones means that they cannot be used on any other network but French law dictates that consumers should be able to use the iPhone on the network of their choice and that the locks should be removed. This means that Britons could buy an unlocked iPhone in France and choose a cheaper network.

Orange – the chosen network operator in France – and Apple are trying to solve the problem before the iPhone is launched there on November 29.

Apple said yesterday that it intended to stick with its deal with Orange. A further announcement is expected next week. But industry insiders expect Apple to produce two versions of the phone – one for use on Orange and one for use on any other network.

Ben Wood, of CCS Insight, the telecoms research group, said he expected Apple to circumvent the problem by charging more for the unlocked version.

“Apple could seek to charge two or three times more so as to make it not worthwhile for consumers for other countries buying it,” he said.

The cost of the iPhone and contract in Britain ranges from £899 to £1,259. In the US, Apple alienated customers after cutting the price of the iPhone by $200 in less than three months.

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