Apple says it does not want to be an 'elitist' company as iPhone prices continue to rise

AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez

Apple COO Jeff Williams speaking about the Apple Watch in September 2018.

• Apple COO Jeff Williams said Apple does not want to be an "elitist" company when asked about rising iPhone prices on Friday.
• Speaking at Elon University in North Carolina, Williams also said analysts "don't really understand the cost of what we do."
• The iPhone's steep price point has held Apple back in developing markets such as India, where Apple has a much lower market share than in the US.

Apple's COO Jeff Williams told students in North Carolina on Friday that Apple does not want to be an "elitist" company.

As reported by Apple Insider, Williams gave a short speech at Elon University followed by a Q&A session. A student asked Williams about Apple's plans to lower iPhone prices, citing a recent report which claimed the iPhone costs significantly less to manufacture than its sale price.

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"The stories that come out about the cost of our products [have been] the bane of my existence from the beginning of time, including our early days," said Williams. "Analysts don't really understand the cost of what we do and how much care we put into making our products."

Read more: A short trip to India showed me just how badly Apple is screwing up in the world's biggest democracy

Williams said he's cognizant of the iPhone's climbing price point, which means it has fallen behind in key markets where consumers have less disposable income. In India for example, Apple commands just 3% of market share.

"We do not want to be an elitist company. That's not - we want to be an egalitarian company, and we've got a lot of work going on in developing markets," Williams said.

His comments come after Apple has continued to raise the price of iPhones. The average selling price of the phones has increased by nearly 27% to $793 since 2010, helped in no small part by the $1,000 iPhone X.