Oh Apple, WHY, WHY…why couldn't you add Verizon Wireless on in 2010?
Now me and my Palm Treo are stuck together until it dies. After that, I'll have to get another Verizon product. I can't switch to AT&T, Apple. I don't know a damn person on the network. All my family and friends use Verzon, so my calls are all free. Why would I switch and pay? Because I love your iPhone? Yes, that's a valid reason, IF I COULD AFFORD IT.
Reading this entry below from WIRED's blog made me want to scream. Last week, there was a glimmer of hope. It's gone now.
Apple: We're Sticking With AT&T for the iPhone
Apple on Wednesday said it has no plans to discontinue AT&T's exclusive rights to carry the iPhone in the United States.
Apple chief operating officer Tim Cook expressed confidence in AT&T as its exclusive U.S. partner, despite Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster's suggestion that the No. 1 reason consumers resist buying an iPhone is because of AT&T.
"We believe they're the best wireless provider in the U.S.," Cook said of AT&T during Apple's quarter-two conference call. "They put the full force and weight of their company behind it. We're very happy with the relationship we have and do not have a plan to change it."
Though the terms of Apple's contract with AT&T remain a secret, many sources have said AT&T's exclusivity over the iPhone expires in 2010. Excited by this rumor, many consumers have been discussing the possibility of the iPhone being available for the Verizon network. Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg last week speculated that a deal with Apple will be more likely when Verizon rolls out its 4G network next year.
However, Cook on Wednesday suggested it was unlikely for Apple to work with Verizon anytime soon. He explained Verizon's network is on the CDMA standard was limited, and AT&T was a better choice because it utilizes the widely used GSM network.
"We chose from the beginning of the iPhone to focus on one phone for the whole world," Cook said. "CDMA doesn't really have a life to it after a point in time."
This news will undoubtedly disappoint some Verizon customers who are itching for the iPhone but refuse to switch to AT&T.
"I would buy two iPhones in an instant if they were available on Verizon," commented reader "MikeE" in a recent Gadget Lab story. "I will never change to AT&T. I have been using Apple products since 1984 but the iPhone is missing."
For more on Apple's second-quarter earnings report, read Epicenter's report.
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