"I want to watch porn on the iPhone".

The launch of the iPhone 3G was without a doubt a sensation. The Werbewoche editorial team was there itself and was amazed to see the scramble outside the Swisscom store in Zurich. We were even more amazed by the media event at the Hiltl restaurant. Before the official sales launch of the iPhone 3G, the phone company Swisscom invited the local media to offer them a "unique multimedia experience". The rumor mill was buzzing. Will Swisscom give away one of these coveted gizmos? When it comes to mobile TV and the Nokia N77, Swisscom has been generous with the journos. Talking to professional colleagues, it turned out that people got together at the Hiltl to literally dust off an iPhone. The motives were different. "My boss sent me here because he wants to give it to his daughter," said a young journalist. His counter neighbor even skipped the "best party" of the year to get his hands on a device. "I'm not buying it," he says bluntly. Several representatives of a commuter newspaper stand around expectantly. They are nervous: "I already have one, but my girlfriend wants one too," one of them says openly. His colleague says, "I heard that iPhones are being distributed. So I quickly signed up." Minutes later, a journalist from a quality newspaper with a global reputation declares that he will definitely not be reporting anything about the iPhone. Why is he here, we ask? "I want to watch porn on the iPhone," he says, sipping his beer. Astonished, we turn to the next interviewee. And indeed, there are journalists who have never held a device in their hands, but have long since written their multi-page test report. We ask them how this works: "Thanks to Google and blogs," is the answer. Another journalist from a Tamedia daily newspaper caught our eye. When asked whether she would keep the iPhone after the test, she said: "We send back everything that costs over 100 francs. Exemplary, we think. Others comment on the statement as pure code chatter. Keeping an iPhone is less bad than making the phone the main topic for weeks, they say. One meticulously counted iPhone mentions in articles by his colleagues over the past few days. "At one point, I counted 41. Unbelievable, isn't it?" Scandalous, we say. Regarding iPhone, by the way, we left empty-handed. Swisscom did not give a test device to all journalists, but only to those who work for high-reach titles. The advertising week is obviously flying under Swisscom's perception radar. As a consolation, our colleagues have to send the thing back in two weeks.