Although Verizon gained much of the attention over the iPhone 4, AT&T apparently added more subscribers enticed by a previous-generation Apple handset. Verizon gained less than 500,000 new customers during most of the second quarter while AT&T signed-up more than 800,000 new iPhone users, according to a Friday report.
In the two months of the three-month period the iPhone 4 was available throught Verizon, the carrier attracted 2.2 million iPhone devices. AT&T, however, experienced a record 3.6 million iPhone activation during the quarter — a 33 percent increase over the same period in 2010. The lack of any run-away success for Verizon runs counter to previous polls suggesting the carrier could siphon-off 26 percent of AT&T customers.
A factor in AT&T’s favor may have been price. The carrier heavily-promoted the $49 iPhone 3GS versus Verizon’s $199 16GB iPhone 4. Only recently has Verizon begun responding with ads highlighting the added features available with the latest iPhone.
Additionally, while much discussion centered on the advantage of a CDMA-based iPhone, Verizon’s network reportedly has slower 3G network speeds than AT&T, perhaps countering complaints of oft-dropped calls from AT&T users.
Thursday, Verizon told reporters it believes the upcoming iPhone 5 will be a “global device” able to operate on either a CDMA or GSM network.
