Image: Martial Trezzini/Associated Press
One of the world's most expensive car brands is partnering with the creator of the world's most expensive phones to create a custom smartphone for the wealthy.
Luxury phone retailer Vertu announced Monday that it signed a five-year contract with British luxury car manufacturer Bentley to produce five high-end smartphones.
The two companies will work together to custom-create the phones, which will have exclusive Bentley content compressed into an app on the device. Design details have not been released.
This is the second time Vertu has collaborated with an opulent car retailer. Beginning in 2005, the phone company partnered with Italian car maker Ferrari to produce two versions of the Vertu Ascent with a Ferrari twist. The cost for the specialty phone was $25,000.
The first Vertu for Bentley phone will be released in October of this year. A price has not yet been made public, but Vertu's last phone, the Signature Touch, cost a jaw-dropping $11,300 for a basic model. The four consecutive phones do not have specific release dates, but will roll out over the next five years.
This latest move comes shortly after former CEO Perry Oosting stepped down in late June. The company indicated that business changes were on the horizon in a statement released June 21:
"All at Vertu are positive about the prospects for the business and have hinted at a strong product roadmap that will see a number of innovative new products brought to market over the next 24 months," the statement reads.
Neither Bentley nor Vertu responded to requests for comment.
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