The lack of iPhone units in its roster is the chief driver of T-Mobile USA’s poor financial performance for the 3^rd quarter of 2010. Deutsche Telekom AG CEO Rene Obermann is convinced that without iPhone, T-Mobile USA will continue to struggle.

“Consumers like T-Mobile but they also want to have the iPhone,” Obermann said during a call discussing the carrier’s international results.

Obermann was led to this conclusion after T-Mobile USA gained 137,000 new subscribers in summer, in prepaid and not because of smart phones. A good business that he is, he knows that while flawless network service is essential, having the right devices at hand is equally significant. The T-Mobile USA arm has still a bleak outlook without iPhone. There were 22 million unit sales of iPhone in country, and none of these was from T-Mobile.

With the rumors of Verizon and Apple iPhone tying the knot and releasing their brainchild within the first quarter of 2011, T-Mobile has responded as it closed the deal to be the first one to release Samsung’s Galaxy Tablet in the market and offer in their postpaid plans for $399.99 dollars under a 24-month holding period. With this, T-Mobile USA has pledged to be a strong supporter of Android phones.

Where T-Mobile has an opportunity, however, is as a digital portal.  This is also an area T-Mobile is lagging, as Verizon and Sprint are both looking to develop their own store fronts for digital content, ahead of what T-Mobile currently offers.  Even Amazon is developing store fronts and media distribution methods in a similar manner, extending its retail tendrils.

The USA arm of Deutsche Telekom used to be the milking cow of the organization. However, drop was experienced from 2008 until present. It was also reported that the company’s cost in keeping an existing subscriber is $87—which is way higher than the $58 cost same period of last year.