All of the talk to date about the future of the IPhone in the U.S. has centered around Verizon. Sitting atop the number of subscribers heap at nearly 90 million customers Verizon is certainly a logical market for the IPhone. Sprint is a long way back in the number 3 spot with 47 million customers. That said why would Steve Jobs go for Sprint over Verizon? The answers to that question are many so let's get started...
First, do not underestimate the effect the "iDon't..." and "There's a Map for That." ad campaigns have had on Verizon's future with Apple. Steve Jobs takes anything anti-Apple as anti-Steve Jobs; and when you're an eccentric genius like Jobs let's just say that Verizon's ads are akin to "Them be fightin' words."
Furthermore, as evidenced by Apple's past and present carrier agreements for the IPhone, one thing is for certain: Apple demands control. To date all of Verizon's posturing and public statements about the IPhone have left little doubt that they are not willing to give Apple revenue sharing and other concessions Apple demands. (Remember that Verizon passed on the IPhone initially for those very issues, which of course led to AT&T landing U.S. exclusivity.)
Sprint, on the other hand, is likely to give Apple the farm if necessary to sell the IPhone. Sprint has been bleeding customers by the millions for serval years now due to a horrible customer service track record and a lackluster handset lineup. However, in the past year plus Sprint has made huge strides in improving customer service. Sprint's handset lineup has improved dramatically as well with the Palm Pre, HTC Hero, and others. Add to the list a new service pricing structure that is without question the best of any national carrier and it now appears that all these changes have at least stopped the bleeding. Sprint's stabilization could turn into an enormous boon with the addition of the IPhone.
Although Sprint's woes over the last few years have been covered widely under the radar they have continued to do what they do better than any carrier - network innovation. The most important innovation being their 1st to market position in the 4G race. Sprint's 51% controlling stake in Clearwire Inc. has made that a reality via WiMAX technology delivering average download speeds of 3-6 Mbps.
Sprint has 33 4G markets live including Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Las Vegas, and Seattle. More importantly, with at least 5 huge markets to be added in the first quarter of 2010 - San Francisco, New York, Boston, Houston, and Washington D.C. Sprint is in the best position of any U.S. wireless carrier, hands down. It's worth mentioning that the San Francisco launch will undoubtably cover the Bay Area as a whole which includes Silicon Valley. (Apple headquarters in Cupertino, CA is in the heart of Silicon Valley just miles from San Francisco proper.)
WiMAX vs. LTE:
Both Verizon and AT&T have publicly commited to LTE (Long Term Evolution) as their 4G future; and it is just that: "in the future" and an indefinite one at best. WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) through Sprint is here and now. There is some debate as to just how long it will take either Verizon or AT&T to bring LTE to market, yet the consensus is that it will be on the order of years, not months. In the world of wireless it goes without saying that 2 or perhaps 3 years is an eternity. With 2 years (or more) of 4G exclusivity Sprint has an extraordinary competetive advantage.
The IPhone 4G:
Thus as the only 4G carrier in the U.S. Sprint could help Apple deliver a 4G IPhone and while they're at it they could compel Sprint to make it the only WiMAX handset in their lineup in exchange for a multi-year CDMA exclusivity agreement. This would of course deliver a crushing blow to Google's Android platform - the only real competition the IPhone has had to date. Just think of the impact an IPhone surfing at true broadband speeds would have on the wireless landscape. Currently there is only one company that can make that a reality for Apple - that company is Sprint.
