AT&T's original deal on iPhone was for five years
It's what we thought... until the Wall Street Journal told us we were wrong. It's what USA Today originally reported, although nobody else was ever able to confirm it... until now. Nilay Patel at Engadget has unearthed some 2008 filings in a 2007 class-action lawsuit that clarify the matter: the AT&T/Apple deal for exclusive domestic service on the iPhone, which has caused much wailing and gnashing of teeth, was originally set for a five-year term. That would put the earliest appearance of a Verizon iPhone into the summer of 2012 -- assuming that there wasn't any reason for one or the other party to break off the agreement.Those disclosures are a couple of years old now, and the circumstances may have changed a bit (exclusivity may have been extended since then), but at least there's some grounding for what the original half-decade setup was intended to be. Even though recent analyst musings led to the surmise that the iPad's bargain data plans, which are delivered sans contract, might have been a carrot in extending AT&T's hold on the iPhone for a few more months, it's not at all clear that an extension would have been necessary to lock in sales through the end of this year.
Share
Categories
It's what we thought... until the Wall Street Journal told us we were wrong. It's what USA Today originally reported, although nobody else...
Add a Comment
I had Verizon and it was terrible in the NYC area. The customer service is poor and the phones suck! I now have the iPhone and it is the best decision i have ever made! I live in NYC and all of the dropped call news is just hype. I never have any problems with dropped call. Even if the iPhone came to Verizon, YOU WOULDNT BE ABLE TO TALK AND USE 3G AT THE SAME TIME. When using 3G on Verizon, all of your calls will go straigt to voicemail. On AT&T I can use the 3G network and talk at the same time which is a HUGE plus!
May 12 2010 at 1:19 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyWell I'm happy. I had Verizon for several years, and their reception/customer service was awful. I hope they never get the iPhone. My father used to have Sprint and it was always hard to make it through a call without being dropped, but that was about five years ago, so I'm assuming their service has improved since then. AT&T is by far the best cellular provider I have ever used, so I'm fine with them remaining exclusive as long as they want.
May 11 2010 at 12:30 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyY'know, someone should go back and check out the keynote where SJ first announced the iPhone. I could have sworn that he said back then that the deal was for 5 years.
May 10 2010 at 11:53 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyImagine! Five years! Just like was said by Steve Jobs onstage when the iPhone was first announced! And Just like everyone else has been ignoring wholesale ever since.
May 10 2010 at 11:43 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyCan we have a "rampant speculation about stuff we have no idea about"-free thread, please?
There'll be another carrier if/when Apple feels like it so can we drop it?
As a dev, they already have my money so free updates for me!
May 10 2010 at 7:57 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down Replyhmm..thanks for posting for me 1password..
anyways..so I am confused after reading this news on every single site and seeing it written the same way..do they have the exclusivity until 2012 or not..?
I told everybody. Why isn't this front page news on TUAW.com?
May 10 2010 at 7:54 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyIgnore my last sentence. I followed this from Twitter and the cutting board was tweeter later then this post.
May 10 2010 at 7:56 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyBrilliant on AT&Ts part.
May 10 2010 at 7:53 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyHot Apps on TUAW
Deals of the Day
more deals- Refurb Apple MacBook Air Laptops: 12" 64GB SSD for $699 + free shipping
- JVC Motion Sensing Clock Radio with Dual iPod Docks for $55 + free shipping
- Apple iPhone Headset with Mic for $4 + $2 s&h
- miFrame Picture Frame Dock for iPad for $64 + $8 s&h
- Refurb Apple iPod nano 8GB MP3 Player for $99 + free shipping, 16GB for $119
- Hannspree Apple-Shaped 28" 1080p LCD HDTV for $270 + free shipping
Software Updates
more updates- EFI Firmware Update brings Lion Internet Recovery to 2010-model Macs
- OS X Lion 10.7.3 released with Safari 5.1.3, Wi-Fi bug fix
- Aperture updated to 3.2.2, addresses Photo Stream issue
- Apple updates Keynote to address Lion issues
- Google Search app gets new look on iPad
- Apple releases Apple TV Software Update 4.4.3
Featured Stories
more stories
Popular Stories
TUAW (or The Unofficial Apple Weblog) is a website devoted to tips, reviews, news, analysis and opinion on everything Apple.
11 Comments