Apple iPhone 3G is likely to hit the Indian market on August 22, with Vodafone and Bharti Airtel targeting to launch on the same day.

Apple iPhone 3G, which was launched in 21 countries on July 11, saw the mad queue of people waiting for the stores to get open in the morning to be the first one to own the happening gadget.

It is learnt that in the second phase, Apple is planning to launch the iPhone in 20 countries. Sources closed to the development told Finan-cial Chronicle that in the second phase, Apple is planning to launch in Asia and African countries. “India is among the list of countries where Apple is targeting to launch in the second phase. This will be the first time that Apple iPhone will be legally available in India. Apple has decided to launch the iPhone in India in the last board meeting,” sources said.

Financial Chronicle had earlier reported that iPhone 3G will be available for Indian subscribers by the middle of August.

“Both Vodafone and Bharti Airtel are planning to launch the iPhone on August 22. Vodafone has received huge pre-registration queries from its

subscribers. Airtel customer care has also received queries on the date of launch in India,” sources added.

When contacted, an Apple spokesperson decli-ned to comment.

“As a part of company policy we do not comment on market speculations,” an Airtel spokesperson said. An email sent across

to Vodafone went unanswered.

Three days after the launch of the iPhone on July 11, in 21 countries, Apple has touched one million iPhone 3G sales. At present iPhone 3G is available in 22 countries — Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Den-mark, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Neth-erlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK, the US and France.

iPhone 3G is available in the US for a retail price of $199 for the 8GB model and $299 for the 16GB model. However, market experts say that the operators will offer the iPhone as a package deal with 12 to 18 months subscription. “It will be priced at Rs 12,000 on an initial payment and subscription deal,” the official said.

However, the grey market vendors are yet to get hold of the new iPhone. The vendors are of the opinion that the iPhone 3G is likely to hit the Indian market by the end of August.

iPhone 3G combines three products in one — a revolutionary phone, a wi-descreen iPod, and a breakthrough internet device.

The arrival of the Apple iPhone shook the wireless business in ways that can still be seen rippling out more than a year since the original product’s introduction. With the launch of the iPhone 3G in more worldwide markets at lower prices, coupled with the new App Store, the iPhone has the potential to threaten other platforms.

iPhone users are also greatly interested in using their little handheld devices for games — something that could worry traditional game companies such as Nintendo.