iPhone News Updated

AT&T Again Downplays Loss Of The iPhone

AT&T Again Downplays Loss Of The iPhone

With Verizon iPhone rumors never ending, AT&T is again saying they expect to see little to no impact when their iPhone exclusive ends.

You’ll recall that last year (right in the middle of a massive wave of complaints about the quality of their network), AT&T’s CEO insisted that network quality (not ETFs or long-term contracts) would wind up keeping iPhone users around.

Now AT&T’s again addressing the possible end of their rocky love affair with Apple, telling the SEC they don’t expect the iPhone’s departure to have a “material negative impact” thanks to people on family or business plans (who either can’t leave and/or are too lazy too) and AT&T’s beefed up selection of phones:

Explaining the lack of impact on its business, AT&T said more than 80% of its contract customers are on family or business plans that are less likely to see turnover. The company also said it now carries a range of smartphones, reducing its dependence on any particular one, and said new devices continue to roll out in the fast-changing industry.

Of course there’s also the fact that AT&T just locked down millions of iPhone 4 users in new long-term contracts, right after jacking their ETF up to $325. Things get substantially more interesting for AT&T when/if an LTE iPhone comes to market, given Verizon’s faster deployment of the technology (Verizon expects 30 markets launched by year’s end, and their entire footprint to be upgraded by the end of 2014).

[Thanks: http://www.dslreports.com]

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