Verizon iPhone to Come with Unlimited Data Plan
More sources are corroborating the story that Verizon will announce a CDMA version of the iPhone tomorrow. A new source now says that Verizon will also offer a special unlimited data plan to those who buy a Verizon iPhone.
If this report from the Wall Street Journal is true, it's clearly a move to attract current iPhone users on the AT&T network, who are no longer able to get unlimited data plans (unless they already had one before 2010).
Verizon has planned a special press conference for January 11 in New York, at which the company is widely expected to announce a version of the iPhone for the Verizon network. The source says such a phone would actually go on sale late in January. Other sources have indicated it will be early February.
Verizon already has the benefit of customer unrest about iPhone performance on the AT&T network, but if the company also offers unlimited data for a competitive price, it could help trigger a mass migration to the Verizon iPhone.
Verizon has long said that it has the network capacity to handle massive amounts of iPhone traffic better than AT&T has, though that claim remains untested until now.
Even if Verizon does offer unlimited data plans as a promotion for the iPhone, many experts think it would only be available for a limited time. Verizon executives have expressed interest in tiered pricing packages similar to AT&T's because it helps them limit the data load on networks.
Verizon heavily promoted a new line of 4G phones at the Consumer Electronics Show last week, but there's little evidence that a Verizon iPhone would be able to use Verizon's 4G network.
