Verizon Buys iPhone Domains, CES Announcement Pending?
It's a new year, and that means a new batch of Verizon iPhone rumors. This one breaks the traditional mold of Verizon executives making promises. Instead, reports indicate Verizon is buying iPhone-related domain names, possibly in advance of an announcement for the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this week.
An entity called "Verizon Trademark Services" has been snatching up URLs for site names such as iPhoneForVerizon.com and iPhoneOnVerizon.com. It's standard practice for companies to buy a set of related domain names for products so that pranksters and scammers can't redirect traffic to a similar URL. This adds to the pile of rumors indicating that Verizon is planning to announce the iPhone is coming to Verizon soon.
There are two major upcoming industry events that would be ideal places to make such an announcement. The first, CES, is the largest electronics trade show in the country and is happening this week. But Apple is also expected to hold a press event sometime later this month to announce the iPad 2. That would also be an opportunity for Verizon and Apple CEO Steve Jobs to make a joint announcement.
Now for a little dose of reality: Rumors have been swirling around Verizon for a long time. Years, in fact. It was at this time last year that Verizon was expected to make the announcement for sure, but it never happened. There were several such episodes even before that, so don't think that this is the evidence we've been seeking. We've been fooled before.
