Verizon May Want To Lock Out Other iPhone Carriers

It doesn't even have the phone itself yet

Dec 8 2010, 12:09am CST | by Mark Raby

Verizon May Want To Lock Out Other iPhone Carriers

It seems that even though a Verizon iPhone hasn't been officially announced, the mobile carrier may already be eyeing options to keep the Apple gadget away from anyone else.

Kaufman Bros analyst Shaw Wu posits that Verizon would be willing to pay Apple a whole truckload of money to keep it away from the gates of T-Mobile and Sprint. Of course, it can't pull it away from AT&T, which will continue to sell the iPhone but not on an exclusive basis.

Wu said Verizon "could be more willing to give in to Apple's terms and thus its iPhone economics are likely to remain favorable."

No one has any clue how much AT&T originally paid Apple to carry the iPhone exclusively, back when it first launched a few years ago. It no doubt got a deal, though, because Apple was a fresh player in the mobile game and actually needed a mobile carrier's help to get its name out there.

Now, it's the mobile carriers that need Apple.

AT&T is already bracing for the impact that losing its hold on the iPhone will have. Meanwhile, the others are doing what they can to get Apple's eye.

In other words, Apple has the upper hand in the situation. The most recent quarter ended with 14.1 million iPhones shipped in the marketplace.

AT&T is hoping its current exclusivity with Blackberry to offer the newest model, the Torch, may help offset the losses it will face with the iPhone, however Wu said it may be unlikely to really change anything. Verizon "does not believe [the new Blackberry OS] is likely to have a material impact."

Wu says he predicts 62 million iPhones to be shipped in 2011. 62 million. Think about that for a minute. Most of those will still be linked to AT&T, just for the longevity factor, but 8-12 million could be attributed to Verizon which would give that carrier a much-needed boost.

Updates

Catch a glimpse of an iPhone assembly line

Source: The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)

Chinese news site ifeng has managed to boldly go where few, including Apple CEO Tim Cook, have gone before -- inside of the Zhengzhou Foxconn facility to get a peek at how iPhones are made. There's nothing new that we haven't seen on A ...
Full article at: The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) More like this 13 minutes ago

It's the season for fruit at Moorpark farmers market

Source: Ventura County Star

Alex's Fruit and Nuts, based in Lancaster, offers some unusual items, including chili flavored dried fruit, at the Moorpark farmers market. Sweet limes, also known as limas, offer the flavor of limes without as much acid. Jim ...
Full article at: Ventura County Star More like this 14 minutes ago

Nassau's desperate bid to borrow $100M

Source: Newsday

Nassau County's attempted end-run around the local legislature and a state control board should be seen for what it is: A desperate act from a desperate county. It would be lunacy for state lawmakers and Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo to enable this charade.Why pa ...
Full article at: Newsday More like this 16 minutes ago

where to buy

Buy from Amazon

Don't miss ...

Apple

iPad mini Rumors continue

Mark Raby
Based in New York City, Mark follows the consumer electronics industry like a hawk. A published book author, he has a particular affinity for 3D technology and video games, and as such will surely be in the market for a new pair of glasses soon. Mark can be contacted directly at mark@i4u.com.