Verizon iPhone definitely coming in 2011, says Fortune

In a profile of Verizon's CEO Ivan Seidenberg, Fortune couldn't quite get him to spill the beans on the upcoming Verizon 'dream phone,' as the story's headline puts it. Still, between the timeline of meetings between Seidenberg and Steve Jobs, and the story of how Verizon and Google found common ground on net neutrality, writer Sarah Ellison lays it on the line. Like the Wall Street Journal before it, Fortune is now confirming a 2011 launch for the long-awaited Verizon iPhone.

The report suggests the phone will be a 3G-only unit (sorry, would-be 4G early adopters) and most likely will not carry a SIM slot and GSM radio to allow worldwide roaming, at least not in the first version of the device. It's also possible that the phone will include live FIOS TV streaming video service, much as the company's anticipated iPad app will do.

We won't know the exact plan until Ivan and Steve take the stage at some undisclosed future date -- but if you're a Verizon customer with your upgrade date coming up in the next few months, you might want to think twice before getting that new Droid while re-upping your contract.