Analyst: AT&T ‘Could Weaken’ After iPhone Exclusivity Ends

Can AT&T survive the end of its exclusive iPhone contract? Probably. But one analyst believes the carrier won’t come away from its arrangement with Apple unbruised. “With its iPhone exclusivity likely to end in 2010, we believe performance could weaken,” Jefferies analyst Jonathan Schildkraut said Thursday.

The analyst put a “Hold” on AT&T shares with a $30 target. AT&T rival Verizon was given a “Buy” rating. Verizon shares could gain if it sells the iPhone later this year.

The carrier, hurting from a dust-up with iPhone owners over talk of reigning in increasing data usage, used the CES in Las Vegas to repair the relationship while also unveiling its after the iPhone plans.

“There is a data explosion out there,” chief marketing exec David Christopher told the Wall Street Journal. Without naming names, Christopher said AT&T network was prepared for the onslaught. “What’s pushing it is certain users using an inordinate amount, and that’s OK,” he said.

In December, AT&T CEO Ralph de la Vega said the carrier might encourage iPhone customers to “reduce or modify their usage” – in other words, a data cap. AT&T said iPhone owners were responsible for 40 percent of data usage despite being only three percent of smartphone owners.

Within days, however, del la Vega said his comments were not clear, that AT&T had “not made any decision to implement tiered pricing.”

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Coupled with the latest remarks, AT&T also introduced what might be called Plan B: five Android-based handsets for the first half of 2010. The phones include Motorola’s Backflip, a device with a 3.1-inch touchscreen, physical QWERTY keyboard and touch-sensitive rear navigation panel.

[Via Barron's, AppleInsider and Gadget Lab]

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