The Korea Information Society Development Institute says the selling price of Apple’s iPhone 4S smartphones in South Korea are 230-thousand won higher than the average price of that in ten foreign countries.

The institute presented on Monday its report on the pricing structure of mobile phones.

The research excluded all forms of subsidies with the exception of those for mobile phones that telecom providers gave to their subscribers.

The report said that the phones are usually distributed through telecom providers in South Korea, thus obstructing a proper price competition.

Meanwhile, the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) introduced a system in which the consumers can purchase mobile phones directly from the manufacturers.