According to data from web monitoring firm Hitwise, 'iphone' was the seventh most popular search term in its News and Media category last week.

Though some may have been searching for a bargain, the announcement also sparked speculation that Apple is about to release a 3G (third-generation) version of the iPhone, which currently uses EDGE technology, often referred to as 2.5G.

An iPhone using 3G mobile networks would be able to download data much more quickly when not in a Wi-Fi hotspot.

The sites that benefited from the surge in interest were those belonging to Apple, O2 and The Carphone Warehouse.

"All three sites experienced an increase in both their overall market share and the amount of traffic that they received from search engines last week, with Apple the big winner in both cases," said Robin Goad of Hitwise.

A separate report from Milward Brown, a media agency, has found that Apple's brand value has increased 123 per cent in the last year, largely thanks to the launch of the iPhone.

www.hitwise.co.uk
www.apple.com/iphone
www.o2.co.uk
www.carphonewarehouse.com
www.millwardbrown.com

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