Since the first generation iPhone was announced in January of 2007, availability in the Us shop has been slight to At&T Wireless. At some point during development, Apple reached out to both At&T and Verizon. At the time, it was At&T who appropriate Apple's terms. Unlike former movable phones, the iPhone would be different. It would not have carrier branding, nor would it be filled with what consumers call "bloatware". At least, that was Apple's position when negotiating and Verizon passed on the iPhone. This worked out great for At&T, who had exclusivity on the iPhone for over three years. Now comes word that the exclusivity has ended and a Verizon iPhone is on the horizon. This will have a major impact for both consumers and the wireless industry.
For consumers in the Us, they will see clear benefits from competition in the middle of two major wireless carriers. At&T removed their unlimited data plan this past year, leaving customers with more costly and restrictive plans. Verizon will reportedly offer an unlimited data plan with the iPhone. The corollary of competing plans will likely mean lower costs and increased services. Some iPhone customers have complained that At&T does not offer assistance on par with Verizon. For those in an area with less than optimal coverage can opt to switch to Verizon. Sure consumers always had the selection to switch wireless carriers, but they could not use the iPhone on a network other than At&T. For some, this of course wasn't any sort of choice. A large percentage of current iPhone users would choose their phone over carrier preference.
There are a large segment of customers who are not currently iPhone owners due to their carrier loyalty. Verizon is the estimate one wireless carrier in the Us and for good reason. They offer the best coverage and call quality. With the increase of smartphones, this group has moved to either BlackBerry or Android platforms. For these current Verizon customers, their former smartphone of selection was based on carrier and not preference. With the Verizon iPhone coming, you can expect plenty of movement within Verizon, with customers jumping to the iPhone platform.
Some experts believe that carrier loyalty resulted in mammoth increase for platforms like Android that would not exist if the iPhone had been available on Verizon. Manufacturers like Motorola, Htc, Rim and Samsung have had a field day generating new customers. While there was competition in the middle of these manufacturers, they never had to deal with eight hundred pound gorilla known as the iPhone. They also had the luxury of selling their phones on the largest Us wireless carrier.
The release of the Verizon iPhone will have far-reaching effects on consumers, wireless carriers and movable handset manufacturers. By waiting over three years, the hype will be at an all time high. Apple and Verizon have the most to gain from this partnership. Phone manufacturers will be forced to changed their strategies. They still have a decided benefit by having the capability to sell phones across all four major carriers. It's likely they will compete on price offering lower cost phones. Regardless of your smartphone preference, the embark on of the Verizon iPhone will likely supply consumers with greater choice, increased services and lower costs.
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