Report: Verizon iPhone a Done Deal, New Form-Factor Incoming

From DailyTech: Since the launch of the iPhone one critical factor has remained constant. In the smartphone's biggest market -- the United States -- the iPhone was sold exclusively on AT&T. But that's about to change.

The Wall Street Journal claims that multiple sources brief by Apple have said that a CDMA iPhone will land early next year on Verizon's network. CDMA is Verizon's 3G tech of choice. Sprint also uses CDMA, while T-Mobile and AT&T utilize GSM, a rival standard.

The iPhone undeniably helped AT&T hang on to its second place spot in the U.S. However, many customers -- particularly in 2007 and 2008 -- were disgruntled about AT&T's poor voice network. While AT&T has made a concerted effort to improve, the experience has still left a bitter taste in many's mouth, and many still hold a negative opinion about the carrier's quality of service.

Meanwhile the iPhone is struggling to stave off dozens of handsets sporting Google's Android operating system which have flooded the U.S. market. Android has already passed the iPhone in U.S. sales and analysts generally believe that it is only a matter of time before it does the same worldwide. More worrisome for Apple, interest in the iPhone is also dropping.

A shift to Verizon, the nation's largest carrier, could help Apple somewhat with both problems. According to James Ratcliffe at Barclays Capital, a Verizon iPhone would grow the carrier's subscriber base by 900,000 in 2011 and sell 9 million iPhones in total (most sales going to existing customers). Hudson Square Research, on the other hand, believes that Verizon could gain even more new subscribers, estimating that 4 million iPhone users would switch from AT&T -- roughly 18 percent of AT&T's iPhone subscriber base.

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