It’s sort of a love story.
Apple may go with Verizon. They may not. They may be building a CDMA phone designed for Verizon’s networks. And then the Capulet and Montague families sit down together over tasty food and beverages while discussing the current season of “Mad Men”.
Per the Wall Street Journal, Verizon’s CEO didn’t sound hopeful about that happening in the near term in a speech today, according to news stories.
Verizon’s Ivan Seidenberg addressed an investor conference and in response to when his network would offer the iPhone, he said, “We would love to carry it, but we have to earn it.”
He also said that as Verizon rolls out its 4G LTE network over the next year that Apple would get on board. “At some point, Apple will get with the program,” he said, according to The Wall Street Journal, which noted that some frustration crept into his voice.
As recently as yesterday there have been reports that Apple has been ordering massive amounts of CDMA chips, which has been interpreted as prepping for a CDMA-based phone on Verizon. But while Verizon is the U.S.’s largest CDMA carrier, it’s not the only one: Sprint is another that uses the same technology.
Even so, Seidenberg didn’t deny that his network would eventually get the iPhone, though tt could be that there are details to still work out with Apple, or there is a deal signed and he knows that Apple wants to be the one to make the announcement.