Sprint Nextel has bagged exclusive carrier rights for the Palm Pre until the end of the year, according to CNBC, citing an anonymous source.
The highly anticipated smartphone from Palm is expected to launch by the middle of the year, which would give Sprint a six- to nine-month hold on the phone.
Palm had announced Sprint as the carrier for the Pre when it launched the device at the Consumer Electronics Show last month. But the company has still not officially disclosed how long the phone will be available just on Sprint before it makes its way to other carriers. Palm has not commented about the speculation.
Palm and Sprint have built a symbiotic relationship over the years. The $100 Palm Centro has had a successful run on Sprint. And now Sprint
needs the Pre to lure customers. On Thursday, Sprint announced that it lost 1.3 million customers in the fourth quarter and posted $1.6 billion in losses.
The Pre could help stanch the bleeding and even bring in new users. But Sprint’s position as the third place carrier and users’ unwillingness to pay cancellation fees to move to Sprint could take a toll on Pre sales, says analyst Jack Gold, president and principal analyst at consulting firm J. Gold Associates.
Also see:
6 Reasons Why the Palm Pre Is Special
Palm Unveils Its Long-Awaited Smartphone, the Pre
Video: Hands-On With the Palm Pre
New WebOS Is Palm’s Secret Sauce
Up Close and Personal With the Palm Pre
Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com
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