As iPhone sales continue to climb, U.S. carriers should expect Apple to also require increased subsidies, one observer writes. Verizon could pay nearly 28 percent more in 2012, with Sprint and AT&T also facing double-digit hikes in payments for the popular smartphone.
According to Geggenheim Securities analyst Shing Yin, AT&T, Verizon and Sprint will likely sell 38 million to 40 million iPhones during 2012, up from 30 million iPhones during 2011. Because Verizon and Sprint sold the bulk of those handsets, their subsidy hikes will be the largest, Yin tells investors.
At the same time, Yin sees no slowdown in Apple’s increasing smartphone sales. Indeed, the analyst projects if the tech giant unveils its next iPhone with LTE support, it “could lead to greater share during 2012 and beyond.” Today, Morgan Stanley told investors it believes Apple’s next-generation iPhone will support both LTE and 3G and be available during the second half of this year.
Thursday, Verizon announced it would no longer sell smartphones that did not support the faster LTE technology. In 2011, Apple unveiled the iPhone 4S without LTE, explaining the wireless standard was not ready for prime time. However, an increasing number of U.S. carriers have built LTE networks, also increasing the likelihood Apple’s next handset will indeed support the feature.
