Two New IPhones Coming; One May Be Aimed at Verizon
Apple Inc. is developing a new iPhone to debut this summer and also appears to be working on a model for U.S. mobile phone operator Verizon Wireless, say people briefed on the matter. — While Apple has unveiled a new iPhone every June …
Context & Ripple Effects
This is the third beat in a year-long Apple–Verizon drumbeat: Business Week asked about new gear from the two companies back in April 2009 in its first pairing of the two, then reported in December 2009 that Verizon was actively preparing for the iPhone with network-side groundwork. What the Wall Street Journal adds on March 29, 2010 is sourcing — people briefed on the matter saying Apple has a summer iPhone in development and appears to be working on a second model aimed specifically at Verizon Wireless.
Both claims remain unconfirmed, and the pickup pattern shows a split reception: Engadget and Gizmodo ran with it (the latter folding in rumored next-gen specs like a front-facing camera and multitasking), while Daring Fireball dismissed the piece as a weak entry in the usual rumor game. CNET's Between the Lines took the demand side seriously, arguing that even the prospect of a Verizon iPhone would freeze smartphone-upgrade decisions.
First-order effects
- If the sourced claims hold, Verizon Wireless moves from preparing for the iPhone to actually selling it, giving Apple a second U.S. carrier for the first time and putting a Verizon-branded model into the summer launch window alongside the annual June refresh.
- Buyers in the upgrade market face a timing decision right now — the Between the Lines read is that the mere possibility of a Verizon model stalls purchases of current handsets until Apple clarifies its lineup.
Second-order effects
- A two-model strategy splits Apple's supply chain and launch logistics across GSM and a second radio path, raising the stakes of the June cadence that has defined every prior iPhone debut.
- Handsets Verizon currently sells as its flagship alternatives suddenly compete against the iPhone inside its own stores, pressuring those vendors' placement and pricing at the carrier.
Third-order effects
- A confirmed Verizon iPhone would mark the beginning of the end for single-carrier exclusivity as the organizing deal of the U.S. smartphone market, shifting competition among carriers toward price and network quality on identical flagship hardware.
- It also cements the pre-announcement rumor economy — unnamed-source reports from major dailies now move consumer purchasing behavior months before any official word, a dynamic Apple neither confirms nor controls.
The trend: U.S. smartphone distribution is drifting from exclusive single-carrier flagship deals toward multi-carrier availability, and Apple's rumored Verizon-bound iPhone is the test case that would make it irreversible.