During a recent sit down with the Wall Street Journal, Verizon's chief executive Ivan Seidenberg stated that they might try to strike a deal with Apple to bring the iPhone over to their network once their 4G network is in place. This report arrives only days after the Wall Street Journal reported that AT&T was working on extending their exclusive deal with Apple to keep the iPhone on their network through 2011.
Now that Verizon has seen what Apple and AT&T have been able to do together, they obviously want a piece of the pie. Seidenberg stated that Apple never actually considered Verizon because of their CDMA network. If Apple were to have chosen Verizon as their exclusive carrier, they would have had to make two separate models of the iPhone, one for the U.S. and one for the rest of the world as GSM and HSPA have become the standard. Now that Verizon is implementing their 4G network nationwide, they feel they have a chance to bring the iPhone over to their network.
The other side of the story is that Verizon didn't see Apple as a viable platform. They snubbed the device well before it was even completed, allowing AT&T to jump in and strike a deal before they could change their minds.
No matter who is to blame for what, it is obvious that Verizon feels that they once again have a chance to get the iPhone. They had better work quickly on implementing 4G and striking a deal before AT&T does, otherwise it is going to be a long wait until 2012.
[via AppleInsider]
