How to Cash In On iPhone Madness
In anticipation of today's release of the iPhone, Engadget's Nilay Patel looks at the process of waiting in line — and the significant amounts of money to be made in the process. On Chicago's State Street, Patel writes. "Jason Cain and his girlfriend Claire Webb-Valez… are being paid $15 an hour (!) to hold a place in line."
And that's just the beginning. A quick Craigslist search in any city nationwide finds dozens of listings of people selling their places in line for hundreds of dollars. $300 for the front of the line in Oakbrook, Illinois … $250 in Century City, CA … $1,000 in New York (presumably that includes the cost of the phone itself) …
Gridskipper's even offering the wonderfully tongue-in-cheek Ultimate iPhone Campout Guide.
And there's even a diversion-causing company that promises to give you a shot at the front of the line yourself…
Philadelphia mayor John F. Street, on the other hand, doesn't like delegating.
More here from InformationWeek … more here from the San Francisco Chronicle … and more here from the Boston Herald.
Photo above is from Engadget.