By Nick Joniec & Jordan Sangrey –
Now that Apple has released the iPhone 4 to Verizon, expanding its carriers past its original AT&T solitary carrier, AT&T may have to find new ways to compete with Verizon, the largest cellular carrier in the U.S.
Among AT&T and Verizon, there are many other cellular phone carriers in the US. Sprint, T-Mobile, and Metro PCS are also some major cell service providers in the nation.
When the Apple released the iPhone four years ago, they signed a exclusive deal with AT&T. The contract was for the iPhone to be offered with AT&T for five years. What happened to that exclusivity contract?
Before the release of the iPhone on Verizon, subscribers only stuck with AT&T because of the iPhone. Now, people are hoping that the call quality and signal availability will be better because of Verizon’s large cellular network.
“I am happy with AT&T. I have not had any reception issues with my iPhone,” said English teacher Gregg McGough.
“The AT&T iPhone has the best network already,” Chris Penn, a freshman said.
With the iPhone now available on the two major carriers, will the iPhone also be released on Sprint and other networks? Is there an public appeal for the iPhone on other carriers?
“I have AT&T, so I wouldn’t care,” said freshman Cody Fox.
“I already have my iPhone on T-Mobile,” explained freshman Andrew Lobos.
Apparently, the iPhone would be a winner on other carriers at Penn Manor.
If the rumored “cheaper” iPhone was released on other carriers, it could bring more even users to Apple’s mobile device sales.
As of March 2011, Apple has sold over 100 million iPhones since 2007.
“Yes, I would buy the iPhone if it was T-Mobile because it is awesome,” said Ben Thomas, 15.