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“It was the first time the carrier has addressed the most closely watched issue regarding its future in such depth in a formal filing,” Sheth reports. “‘We do not expect any such terminations to have a material negative impact on our wireless segment income, consolidated operating margin or our cash from operations,’ AT&T said in the filing with regulators on Friday.”
MacDailyNews Take: If AT&T brass really believe that they will face no “material impact” from the loss of U.S. iPhone exclusivity, they need to lay off the ‘shrooms.
Sheth reports, “The iPhone is AT&T’s best-selling phone and is widely considered to be single-handedly keeping the carrier from losing customers to rival Verizon Wireless. AT&T has held exclusive rights to cary the device in the U.S. since it was introduced in 2007. Speculation that the exclusivity contract could be nearing an end has weighed on AT&T’s stock price.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Fellow American iPhone users, our long national nightmare is almost over.
Am I the only person in the world who isn’t having any problems with AT&T? My iPad 3G has performed remarkably in the northern Illinois area (not by Chicago). I wish they hadn’t done that BS with the unlimited data plan going away (I’m still on it!), but aside from that, their service has been solid.
That being said, my one anecdote is hardly representative of AT&T’s quality as a whole, but for what it’s worth, I’ve loved my iPad’s 3G access. It’s faster and more reliable than my GF’s crappy DSL
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@Matt
I think it’s more about the fact that ATT rips people off rather than the basic functionality that we expect out of their network. They have had just too many mistakes (from MMS to tethering to cutting unlimited data plans) over the last couple of years.
Dream come true
I’m afraid AT&T is living in la la land.
Agree with matt! I don’t have an iPhone so I can’t say first hand how great or crappy it is in the Mid-Atlantic region regarding AT&T, but my friends and strangers who I talked to regarding their iPhone have no problems or gripes about AT&T ‘s coverage, dropped calls, poor 3G, dropped calls, customer service, dropped calls, no bars, dropped calls. Nope, no problem whatsoever.
As for me, my iPad 3G on AT&T’s Unlimited plan has been great. Can’t say if I had the iPhone I would have same results because 3G data is probably different then the signal to acquire incoming calls but at least I don’t have to go out and find the sweet spot in my yard in order to get a bar, like I do with my T-Mobile GSM phone. Had I lived down the street from where I am, I’d have no problems. Of course!!! But overall, 3, 4 or 5 bars is pretty consistent regarding what I get in various rooms in my house with AT&T’s 3G service. So no complaints with AT&T here. Well except data price… but I have a exceptions to the pricing of gas, groceries, Apple products, pet food, tv’s what I paid for my car, basically anything that is taking money OUT of my wallet, I think the other is asking too much! And of course, my employer pays me too little! But that’s just me.
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You go with the guys with the best signal strength in the ares where you live, work and play. Those all being equal, you look at the TCO of your iPhone. The best plan wins.
You’re in the Mid Atlantic region! WTF, are you on a cruise ship?
It’s not like there will be a huge exodus to another carrier.
Sure some people will leave, but many will stay (70+% satisfaction), and those who do leave will not do so all at once.
While I don’t like not having a choice… I’ve had no more problems with ATT than I have had with Verizon and Alltel before it.
My three complaints with ATT
1. How they handled and timed the changes in data plans, mostly for the iPad
2. Starting with the 3G iPhone, being forced to pay the higher data charge even when I’m rarely in a 3G area. The closest coverage area is 4-hours away. Should have been a better way to handle this.
3. Anytime I walk into an ATT store. I’m convinced their employees are trained to be tools
But in terms of dropped calls, coverage area, international roaming, data speed, and onerous SMS fees – no better to sometimes better than competitors.
” 3G data is probably different then the signal to acquire incoming calls “
It’s also different than the signal. Schools? I’ve sh-t ’em.
@ Tiger Leopard
Maybe so. But Verizon is worse. By far. I don’t think I’ve ever had a worse customer service experience than I did with Verizon. Every single time I left the store, I was angry. Whether it be them lying about “overcharging” a battery that seemingly decided to stop working, or them putting bullshit charges on the account because the down key was programmed to open the browser on a “multimedia phone” (a category of dumb phone they made up to charge more for), or the $10 fee to “transfer contacts” because CDMA phones lack sim cards, or their crappy software they insisted on putting on every phone regardless of how horribly it was locked down.
The best part is when you call corporate to complain, and they tell you that all of their stores are independent contractors and they take no responsibility for the actions or words of their employees.
One thing I have to say in AT&T’s credit. Apple has truly made them little more than a dumb pipe. Verizon’s signal may be stronger in some areas, but I will never ever go back to the shitshow that is Verizon.
I actually don’t think ATT will have reduced iPhone contracts, if and when the exclusivity ends. Apple will simply sell more iPhones (through the secondary carrier) ON TOP OF what is already being sold for use with ATT. But all that won’t happen until Apple is able to ramp up production of iPhones to a point where there is no waiting list for the existing distribution channels, and every place that currently sells iPhones has at least a few dozen iPhones (of each config) in the back room.
Until that production rate milestone is reached, and iPhone supply increases to reach equilibrium with iPhone demand, Apple is NOT going to sell any more iPhones by having a second U.S. carrier. Therefore, Apple will just stay with ATT as the exclusive U.S. carrier.
If the iPhone 5 is unlocked and pan-capable, so users can change carriers seamlessly, ATT will have to earn their keep. Sprint is hungry and will offer damned good service where they can and an excellent price. T-Mobile probably will too. Erosion will happen. It will be like pre-iPhone times, where the devices aren’t part of the equation. Who even remembers what phone they had? You just went with your best deal among the available carriers. I was tethering my 12″ iBook to my Sprint phone in 2003 for $15 extra per month. Now the hardware standard is the iPhone, so what ever carrier offers the best services for the least money gets my business.
You people REALLY think it will be different on Verizon? All cell providers suck. Remember, Verizon is the reason why the iPhone is not on Verizon.
@Tiger Leopard
That’s a sticky position you put AT&T into. Can’t it easily be said that Apple’s success borne some of the problems AT&T has.
Remember it was Jobs himself who accentuated the relationship with AT&T when in reality, he had no where else to go! “I got no where else to go!” (Richard Gere quote from ‘An Officer and a Gentleman’ movie). Don’t blame AT&T’s lack of infrastructure for problems with a successful runaway hit product like the iPhone when Apple knew of AT&T’s limitations to start. Didn’t AT&T ramp up some of it’s capabilities before the introductory iPhone launch in June of 2007? Or was that for 3G? Or both?? Apple knew! But Steve himself couldn’t have dictated to AT&T when they tied the knot that our phone is gonna be a hit and we want you AT&T to be able to handle MMS and Tethering when tons and tons of people are going to clamour for it. More so then all your other products combined because we at Apple made it easy and cool for the users to want to do those things! When in reality the whole thing could have bombed OR become a typical overpriced cute niche product from Apple to go along with their other overpriced cute niche products (those are not my sentiments mind you, just what somebody MIGHT say).
It is one thing to offer those services where you expect a couple of million across your network to utilize, but it’s another when that number grows to tens of million and in concentrated areas where your buildup is not as it is needed to handle it all. Is it AT&T’s fault that Apple invented a smart phone the way it should be with it’s KISS approach to interface so as to entice one to want to utilize a features rich product, with an App store eating up your 3G data in your pipelines? All the while enduring the endless parade of insults from sufferers where AT&T’s service and infrastructure is lacking?
AT&T? Apple? I don’t know. Tough call!
I left Verizon after 15 years and came to AT&T before buying an iPhone. Our family found the service superior. I subsequently bought an iPhone. I have had NO problems; on dropped calls, poor ceverage, etc….
I see no reason to leave AT&T.
This will not affect AT&T. If Apple continues to make GSM iPhones for AT&T as fast as they can, AT&T will still be able to sell them all. If, in addition to AT&T, Apple begins spreading those GSM phones to T-Mobile, then AT&T may have a problem. There already waiting lists and shortages of devices as it is. With availability on more (GSM) carriers, this could only get worse. If they make a deal for a Verizon (or Sprint) phone, that would meant that they’d have to get a new factory ready, which will churn out CDMA phones for the two carriers. Obviously, this factory’s output won’t affect much the existing GSM production, although some component suppliers might have to split their output to two factories, thus reducing the output capacity of the GSM facility.
The ultimate point is, as long as Apple can sell every GSM phone they make, AT&T will continue to sign those two-year contracts at the same clip. As long at the production capacity for GSM phones doesn’t get affected by the new CDMA facility, AT&T has nothing to worry about.
People who wanted an iPhone today and walked into a Verizon store would most often walk out of it with an Android device (if sales people there are any good). If Verizon ultimately does get the iPhone, these people would represent the possible sales that Apple was missing so far. Whoever went to the AT&T store to ask for an iPhone would only get it if they had it in store. If not, even AT&T salesman would have no problem selling them a Samsung or HTC for the same money, with the same data plan.
@Al
You sure you’re not “TheConfused1”?!
No cruise ship here. But no worries, I’ll educate you Al… That wouldn’t be short for ‘Al Bundy’ would it?
Mid-Atlantic is the middle part of the eastern seaboard of the US. When you look at a map of America, look at the east coast. That would be the right side of the map. Your other right, unless you’re looking at it upside down to which you have bigger problems. Now, once there, start at the top at Maine and when you get half way down before you get to the end which is Florida… BINGO! Mid-Atlantic region.
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Humor! It’s a good thing! Right Al?
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None of the cell services are straightforward (3 syllable word for those in Rio Linda that means HONEST).
I’ve worked with most and they all have their tricks & twists. Just the way it is. Use it until you don’t like it and leave for another service.
That is all I can do. Better things to waste my time on.
I have been with AT&T since the 90’s. Well Cingular. I see no reason to leave as long as they continue to carry the iPhone. Any problems I have had are no different than any other provider.
I must admit AT@T has improved it’s service remarkably here in Jupiter,Fl. Not one dropped call, and snappy data service in the last month. Our 3Gs, Ipads and iPhone 4 are running very well. Even with tethering a jailbroken 3Gs is performing superbly. We’re shocked given that until recently my posts have trashed the carrier.
Bring on the other service providers and then hopefully we’ll have better rate plans and better service for those who don’t. Our one and only gripe is what we have to pay each month.
I expect to happily stay with AT&T which has, in my area, worked to upgrade and stabilize their system. When I was with Verizon – pre iPhone – there were bandwidth problems, dropped call issues, all the same stuff that is seen on any carrier. It will be interesting to see if an influx of iPhone users overwhelms Verizon (or any alternate carrier). By now AT&T has had 3 years to work on the issues, and it really has in my opinion. I’m not sure the other carriers know just how demanding iPhones, and especially their users, can be.
I think everyone is laying a layer of Android in to compensate. Should cover over things for a few quarters.
My ATT service got much better more than a year ago, and I will only change if my most frequent iPhone callers move to something else.
ATT will lose some iPhone customers, but probably not so much. Rather there will be a surge of new iPhone users on other networks.
You realize of course the real suffering will be among make-believe iPhone makers.
As if Verizon, in illegal collusion w/ Google, is going to be better (their current 3G is worse).
I am with Matt. AT&T has been stellar. None of the other cellular providers are any better and I will direct this at the author of the article: if you believe other wireless providers are better then you are eating shrooms you fucker. The the other haters: you guys have absolutely nothing to do with your lives; quit complaining like a bunch of women you fags. If you do not like your provider then switch to another one instead of blogging about your insignificant/petty almost always perceived problems. Geeeez.
AT&T may even gain customers once people actually can compare two or more realities rather than one reality and one fantasy.
I don’t know. Customer service with AT&T has been WAY better than my 8 years with Verizon.
Dropped calls haven’t been much of an issue in the last 6 months either thanks to AT&T’s aggressive upgrades in the Philly area.
I can’t wait to get off AT&T, but I’m not going back to evil Verizon. My contract is up in December, and I’m gonna buy a dumbphone pay-as-you-go SIM card and swap it into my iPhone 3G, and never look back. I am not paying usurous fees to AT&T anymore. I can’t stand it. The next iPhone I buy will be bought outright…. and I’ll figure out how to use it without spending an arm and a leg.
Can you imagine if Apple treated customers the way phone carriers treat theirs? They’d be bankrupt very quickly. Cheating, lying, ripping off, locking in, and bold-face bait-and-switching customers seems to be phone carriers’ business ‘best practices’ and I am sick of it. Apple has spoiled me by always doing right by me, and I will continue to happily give them my money and forgive any minor mistakes or hardware problems because of that.
Phone carriers, on the other hand, have EARNED my hatred.
I don’t hold a brief against AT&T, except that my iPhone 3G can’t pick up a signal at my log cabin in hill country.
There is a Verizon signal here, so I’ve installed an outside antenna and a signal booster to allow my MiFi to give me Internet access when my WildBlue satellite connection flakes out (which is very often).
I’m holding out on getting an iPhone 4, on the possibility that Verizon may be able to sell them. True, two friends have demonstrated that the iPhone 4 can pick up the AT&T signal at more places on my property than can my iPhone 3G, but still not inside my cabin. I’d prefer not having to go outside in the rain or snow to make a call from my iPhone.
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Although having additional carriers may be good to some, AT&T has done a great job. Before the iPhone, AT&T was my preferred carrier. Things aren’t going to change much if the phone is open to other carriers other than Apple selling a heck of a lot more ecosystem.
The loud whiners are the only voices people hear. Stats show most are satisfied with ATT. Past consumer trends show that over 70% of customers are too lazy to change providers, even if they are needlessly or knowingly paying too much. MDN’s OTL on this one. ATT will lose a few but not a lot. Those lost will be regained over time.
I’ll stick with AT&T I believe Verizon is an immoral company run by immoral people that belong in jail for actively trying to end Net Neutrality.
Of course AT&T won’t be affected by having multiple carriers with the iPhone. Here in Australia, no carrier can get enough iPhones to meet demand.
The company that suffers most from multiple carrier iPhone availability is HTC.
MDN, may you get your VZ iPhone and may you suffer from their terrible service. I’ve had AT&T phones for 8 yrs and iPhones for 3. Never had any problems. Customer service is excellent. Reliability stellar. We’ll see how reliable VZ’s network is when they actually have to start handling some real data traffic.
Hey, AT&T works great where I live. Competition is fine, but I’ll be sticking with AT&T unless verizon pulls out some crazy deals.
If I lived in Dallas, TX I would stick with AT&T. But, since I live in a small town in Utah that only VERIZON truly caters to, I’ll be switching to Verizon when they get the iPhone. I’m tried of paying AT&T for 3G service in an area where they don’t offer 3G. Only Verizon does. So, I think that is how it will play out for most. Your carrier choice will be based on how well they service your main location and possibly main locations you travel to often.
This is an SEC filing intended to warn investors/potential investors of the risks in investing in AT&T. AT&T opens up a huge risk of lawsuit when they downplayed the risk associated with loss of Apple iPhone exclusivity. If there’ll be a customer exodus following Apple iPhone on other carriers and a huge drop in profit/share price, investors can rightly blamed AT&T for downplaying the risk. When conversations in the AT&T management team come out in court, they’ll be exposed as incompetents or liars who filed false claims.
There is a reason why SEC filings are full of risks; imagined, real or exaggerated. There isn’t an investor lawsuit on the upside.
cuz i’m the taxman: “MDN, may you get your VZ iPhone and may you suffer from their terrible service.”
This makes no sense.
– Your good experience does not mean that everyone else has one too.
– Competition is a good thing.
If MDN (and others) gets their wish for an iPhone not locked on AT&T network AND gets a terrible service, they can simply go back to AT&T. That’s the wonderful part about having a choice.
At the very least, having other networks carry iPhone means that AT&T’s network is somewhat relieved from congestions compared to if AT&T maintains the exclusivity. That’s good for AT&T customers too.
AT&T will not face significant loss once the exclusivity contract expires. When number portability first came to be people expected mass exodus’ from one carrier to another. This never happened. There might be a slight correction, but in the end all it’s going to mean is Apple is going to sell more phones.
Today I had 4 dropped calls! I was in my home in Ft. laud. Talking to another ATT user in Chicago…..also in their home…..and 4 dropped calls! And NOT UNUSUAL AT ALL!
OK … Let’s try to reason this through:
(1) there is a large hungry market for Verizon CDMA iPhone (USA only)
(2) CDMA do not use a SIMM for ID portability between carriers
(3) CDMA does not support simultaneous voice/data
(4) Apple can just as easily ramp a separate production facility
(5) Qualcomm has a special chip that can combine CDMA & real 4G
(6) Verizon has a new found willingness to work with Apple
(7) Verizon agrees not to add it’s proprietary locks on the iPhone service
(8) Verizon has big plans for infrastructure upgrades AND 4G rollout in 2011
This is gonna be quite a spectacular rollout! Is this a dream or what.
I have to admit that while I hated AT&T when I got my first iPhone (first generation), they’ve gotten much better over the years. I don’t have any weak signal issues where I live and where I work anymore, and in general no worse call dropping than my Verizon phone.
Customer service is MUCH better. I never have to wait more than a few minutes now. Last time I called them to clarify some minutes I thought were incorrectly billed (they weren’t), the CSR gave me an extra thousand roll-over minutes because I had used most of my during a family medical emergency! He did this after he noticed my usage was unusual.
AT&T could still make my bill easier to figure out… I don’t really need a 32 page bill! On a recent trip, getting a signal on the Washington coast was difficult, and couldn’t get consistent 3G coverage in the Sacramento area.
But, all in all, I’m much happier with my AT&T service than I used to be. Happy enough that I decided to upgrade yet again to the iPhone 4 and re-up for another couple of years.
@Matt I left Verizon four years and switched to AT&T before the iPhone existed. I’ve been very happy with their coverage and customer service. With all the constant beating on AT&T here and other places and the constant praising of how great Verizon is I was considering switching back when my contract was up.
But just last week I got to use a Verizon phone at work for a few days and I was quickly reminded of why I left them in the first place. Dropped calls constantly and when I did have a connection it sounded like the other person was speaking through a sock. Then there were times the sound would go in and out giving me just clips of the other person’s conversation. I wasn’t in any fringe areas, but in areas where the phone showed a full signal.
I get dropped calls with the iPhone, more than I would like and much more than I got with the first phone I had with AT&T. But nothing like what I experienced with Verizon’s supposedly “rock solid network” to use a MacDaily News phrase. My opinion is the bulk of the problems people complain about are directly caused by the iPhone – by antenna issues its had from the beginning and from the overloading of networks it generates with millions of iPhones hogging bandwith. And I wonder how Verizon is going to deal with it once its networks get flooded with millions of iPhones. If people are unhappy with AT&T’s network just wait until they overload Verizon’s.
One other thing I wanted to comment on, after reading other reader’s posts, is about customer service. Verizon has to have the worst customer service of any cell phone provider. Their reps are rude, arrogant and clueless. You find out just how valuable you are to them as a customer the first time you have a serious problem.
It’s not that apple would sell more phones if on say t- mobile or verzion or sprint. But they would open themselves to people who either don’t have AT&T coverage in thier area or already have another carrier they are happy with.
Apple also needs to get a bigger screen. With other phones out there with 4 and 4.5 in screens some people look at those over iPhone because of the smaller screen.
But will AT&T suffer some over time but not right away. Apple will gain because they will be on more carriers even if not selling more phones at least we would have the choice to go with a different carrier.
Personally even here in Kansas city AT&T has plenty of dropped areas and areas with little 3G coverage. You get down to se Kansas and AT&T really does not exist. My grandparents have horrible coverage down there and no 3G anywhere. I always am stuck on edge when using the net when visiting.
Side Note:
The iPhone 4 antenna issue is real. We have 4 iPhones in our family. Two 4’s and two 3Gs. The 3Gs gets, with the ‘corrected’ iOS4, has way more bars, better sound quality and never drops a call. We have a MicroCell in our house because we have zero bars. The 3Gs can recieve 5 bars anywhere in the house and up to 30 feet outside. With the 4 I have to stand in the same room or I can’t understand the caller. This happens with or without a case. On both iPhone 4’s. If I didn’t need HD video recording for my career I would return this phone in a heartbeat. And I love iPhones. I’ll always own one. I’ve bought every version they’ve released. Just goes to show the customer loyalty that Apple has rightfully earned. But if this was the first iPhone I ever bought, it would be my last. People love the iPhone so much, we’re willing to overlook an obvious design flaw to keep it and justify it in our own separate ways. If this was a Windows or Android phone this site would rip it to pieces.
Just my .02. Like I said I’m keeping it anyway. Love everything else about it. When iPhone 5 doesn’t have these issues that in itself will prove the design flaw that Steve Jobs has tried to sugar coat. This is real world experience from an iPhone lover. Not a hater.
I’d like to hear opinion on the following.
Current AT&T subsidy for the iPhone is known to be around $450. This is double the amount of standard subsidy for all other smart- (and dumb-)phones. AT&T is able to pay this subsidy because they can easily recover it from the iPhone. The initial two-year contract may not necessarily bring enough profit to pay for the subsidy, but AT&T can afford this, because those US iPhones aren’t going anywhere after that 2-year contract. About 90% of iPhones bought in the US continue to rake in (at least) $55 per month (even well after the subsidy is paid off), because they have nowhere else to go. Vast majority of users either hand them down to other family members (adding a line, with a data plan), or sell them on eBay. Since T-Mobile doesn’t support 3G on the same frequency as the iPhone, most of those after-market iPhones are still on AT&T.
If the iPhone were to become available on another network, when an existing iPhone owner switches to Verizon (or Sprint), they must get a new iPhone for every member of their family; no more hand-me-downs of old iPhones, because Verizon (or Sprint) are CDMA. People that would normally hand their phone down to their kids cannot do that now, so the iPhone is pressed into iPod Touch duty, and is off that AT&T data plan. There will still be those who will try and sell the iPhone on eBay, but those numbers are small anyway.
Bottom line: AT&T will NOT be able to afford the subsidy it is giving today, if the exclusivity were to end. Same goes for other carriers.
We may be surprised with a $100 increase in the average iPhone retail price (with contract) once the exclusivity is over.
Any thoughts on this?
@ Predrag
That’s interesting, but I think ATT bases service pricing on earning back the subsidy during the two-year contract period. If the subsidy is $450, over 24 months, it is less than $20 per month. And most of those iPhones will stay with ATT after 24 month, even if there is a secondary carrier. Why? Because if an iPhone customer is happy with the phone and with the service, and has kept it in good condition, many will keep that same iPhone going beyond two years; not everyone has a desire to spend another $199/299 to get the latest and greatest as soon as possible. And not everyone is ticked off at ATT (in terms of service) and desires to abandon ship ASAP.
Also, have you seen what a used iPhone costs on eBay? Even a “2G” 1st gen 4GB iPhone (in good working condition) goes for well over $100, often $150 or more. Many of those used iPhones being sold to new owners will come right back to ATT. Used iPhones are going to be like used Macs; compared to other mobile phones, more used iPhones will remain in service and fewer will be “recycled” (just as used Macs stay “useful and in use” for much longer than used PCs). And on average, I’ll bet iPhones are better cared for compared to other smart phones.
However, since an “exclusive” contract is more valuable, it DOES make sense that the subsidy payment per iPhone will become somewhat lower once there is more than U.S. carrier. But I think Apple has more than enough profit to keep the up front iPhone price the same, especially with additional revenue from iTunes Store and App Store sales, plus iAds. That “service” revenue may not be “primary” to Apple, but I’m sure Apple makes “some” profit from those sources.
One other consideration that I do not hear discussed is the percentage of iPhones sold directly by Apple (from an Apple Store or the online Apple Store) versus iPhones sold through an external distributor (such as ATT). With more than on U.S. carrier, especially if the second carrier is Verizon, they will be competing for iPhone customers. The way to compete is to offer “special deals,” such as free accessories or “first month of service free” or even rebates. So if the carriers are offering these deals to compete (and Apple does not), a larger percentage of iPhones will be sold through the distributors (not directly from Apple). And I’ll bet Apple makes more profit on an iPhone if it is sold directly.
Ken1w:
AT&T is arguing precisely that they won’t really have a significant exodus after exclusivity ends. Most people don’t really have an issue with their carrier.
As for the residual value of an iPhone on eBay, it is more-or-less in line with other used smart- and dumb-phones (approximately at 30% of its full retail price).
And on the issue of competing carriers and their incentives, we must keep in mind that this is Apple. If you look at all other hardware, the retail price for any Apple product is set by Apple, and no reseller was ever allowed to offer any special discounts, BOGO offer, or similar. No matter where you buy Apple products, the retail price was always within 2% of Apple’s mandated number.
In other words, for Apple, it really doesn’t matter all that much whether they sell through their own retail operation (the mark-up from the wholesale price goes towards operating costs of the retail division), or through AT&T (or any future carrier).
The issue of reduced subsidy remains. We’ll have to see what Apple decides to do about this, but I doubt they’d rather cut their profit in order to keep retail price same, then keep the profit by either powerfully arm-wrestling with the carriers for a fat subsidy, or raise the upfront price. Knowing Steve Jobs, though I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up convincing ALL those carriers to give him twice what they’re giving to other hardware makers.
MDN…
It’s quite fun to se how you have been cheering for ATT all these years talking about how Verizons network would suck if they had 10 million iPhones etc.
I’m just wondering, where is your ATT love now?
You are turning the way the wind blows…