In the early iPhone era, US phones were usually subsidized/financed by mobile phone carriers, e.g. an expensive iPhone could be heavily discounted or "included"

In the early iPhone era, US phones were usually subsidized/financed by mobile phone carriers, e.g. an expensive iPhone could be heavily discounted or "included" in a 2-year contract, with the carrier looking at the lifetime value of the customer's data subscription. This was less common in Europe and elsewhere, where customers were more likely to purchase their phone separately. If anyone was burning money, it was US carriers, rather than US mobile phone users.