Verizon must sell US$23.5 billion worth of iPhones this year to meet a commitment it made to Apple in 2010, according to an investment research firm’s analysis of SEC filings, reports “The Los Angeles Times” (http://tinyurl.com/n6jckbl).
Because of slower-than-expected sales, Verizon now must double its iPhone sales of last year. If it falls short, the company could be on the hook for as much as $14 billion, Moffett Research said in a report.
“It is likely that Apple would be reluctant to simply ignore these commitments, since many other carriers around the world are probably in a similar situation, and a simple amnesty would set an unwanted precedent,” the research firm wrote. “It is therefore unrealistic to think that Apple won’t extract some consideration for renegotiating these shortfalls.”