iPhone and Verizon: An intriguing possibility

Rumors of an iPhone deal between Verizon Wireless and Apple, bubbling since the fall, spiked again yesterday with another report that the biggest-selling smart-phone may be coming to the country's biggest cell-phone carrier.

If true—and who really knows, especially when it comes to secretive Apple?—the deal would have promise for consumers. In recommending the iPhone—in our smart-phone Ratings, available to subscribers—we've long made a caveat of the middling record of AT&T in our surveys of consumer satisfaction with cell-phone service, also available to subscribers. We've also pointed out that coverage for the 3G high-speed data networks that the newest iPhone, the 3G, uses are spottier for AT&T than for Verizon (available to subscribers).

Also intriguing is the possibilities of multimedia collaborations between the carrier and Apple, which has used the iPhone to advance the bar on mobile multimedia. Verizon has been a leader in TV for cell phones, with its Vcast mobile TV, a live-TV service offering cable and broadcast channels.

A North American iPhone that works with the CDMA technology used by Verizon might also spell some advantages for cell-phone subscribers north of the border. As we've pointed out, there's been discontent over the cost of service with Rogers Wireless, the current Canadian iPhone carrier. The CDMA version developed for Verizon might allow new, perhaps, cheaper option for Canadians, with carriers in Canada that use CDMA, such as Bell Canada and Telus.

Even if the rumor pans, out, a Verizon iPhone likely isn't imminent. Even putting aside possible conflicts with AT&T's current exclusivity deal with Apple, deployment could be at least six months to a year away because of the FCC's and Verizon's lengthy approval processes. Manufacturers we've spoken with say Verizon is one tough customer when it comes to adapting and approving cell phones for its network.

It's also quite possible that the much-vaunted, iPhone-like Palm Pre will get to Verizon before any iPhone does. The Pre is slated to debut on Sprint—another CDMA carrier—sometime midyear. Palm's exclusivity deal with Sprint may be only the typical 90 days, which means they could have a Verizon-ready Pre ready before the holidays.

—Paul Reynolds and Mike Gikas