Verizon iPhone ready to debut - and dominate
Verizon Wireless's unveiling of its iPhone this week will shift the landscape in the wireless industry, helping Apple Inc. boost sales and vie for customers against Google Inc. and Research In Motion Ltd., analysts say.
Verizon, the nation's No. 1 mobile-phone carrier, will debut its iPhone at an event in Manhattan on Tuesday, according to a person familiar with the plans. The company will begin selling the device later this month, the person said.
Verizon may sell 13 million iPhones this year because of pent-up demand from existing customers, said John Hodulik, a Manhattan-based analyst at UBS AG. The debut will end AT&T Inc.'s nearly four-year run as the exclusive carrier of the iPhone, a period in which the device has been a top seller and faced complaints about reception.
"It's going to be the dominant device at Verizon as soon as it's launched," Hodulik said.
Moving to the country's largest mobile-phone operator will give Apple the opportunity to sell to the 93.2 million customers at Verizon, which has heavily promoted phones that run Google's Android software. AT&T, the second-largest mobile-phone operator, had 92.8 million customers at the end of September.
AT&T sold 11.1 million iPhones in the first nine months of 2010, putting it on track to sell more than 14 million for the year. Apple gets about $400 per phone, Hodulik estimates. If Verizon sells 13 million units next year, that would give Apple an additional $5.2 billion in sales. Apple's revenue for the fiscal year ended in September was $65.2 billion.
The success of Android phones, made by Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co., has put pressure on Apple to align with Verizon, said Chris Larsen, a Manhattan-based analyst at Piper Jaffray Cos.
Last week, ComScore Inc. said Android topped the iPhone in U.S. smartphone subscribers for the first time, with 26 percent of the market; Allpe had 25 percent. BlackBerry maker Research In Motion had the top spot with 33.5 percent.
Sarra Sounds Off, Ep. 15: LI's top basketball players On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Newsday's Gregg Sarra and Matt Lindsay take a look top boys and girls basketball players on Long Island.
Sarra Sounds Off, Ep. 15: LI's top basketball players On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Newsday's Gregg Sarra and Matt Lindsay take a look top boys and girls basketball players on Long Island.
