Verizon CEO Supposedly Sold Idea Of LTE-Enabled iPhone To Steve Jobs

Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam spoke yesterday at the National Association of Broadcasters conference in Las Vegas. His main talking point was the fact that video now accounts for 50 percent of Verizon's network traffic. And it's thanks in no small part to its investment in 4G LTE. But perhaps more interesting is McAdam's claim that he sold the idea of an LTE-enabled iPhone to Steve Jobs. Fierce Wireless has the story:

Interestingly McAdam also recounted a meeting he had with former Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who is now deceased. McAdam was trying to convince Jobs to make the iPhone 5 compatible with LTE. "I was really trying to sell him and he sat there without any reaction. Finally, he said, 'Enough. You had me at 10 Mbps. I know you can stream video at 10 Mbps.' And Apple's next phone was LTE," McAdam said.

McAdam didn't specify exactly when this pitch of his took place with the late Apple CEO. Nor did he make clear whether he was already the CEO of Verizon by then. Formerly serving as COO of Verizon, McAdam was appointed as CEO of the company in August 2011. Apple was at first disinclined to add LTE support to its popular handset. This was because, as Tim Cook said a couple of years ago, the early LTE chipsets forced design changes the company wasn't willing to make. But all's well that ends well as LTE had in fact made its way to the handset with the launch of the iPhone 5 in September last year. And prior to that, LTE made its debut on an iOS device with the release of the third-generation iPad in March last year. Via: The Verge

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