By Neil Hughes
Published: 09:45 PM EST (06:45 PM PST)
Apple's exclusive carrier contracts for the iPhone in each country continue to fall, as a new report has claimed that two new carriers in Canada will offer the handset.
Citing sources within both companies,
The Globe and Mail reported that Bell Canada and Telus Corp. will
begin selling the iPhone in November, bringing the previously exclusive contract held by Rogers Communications for more than a year to an end.
"The country's two largest incumbent telecom companies, under pressure to re-ignite growth as new wireless competitors begin operations this year, are banking on Apple Inc.'s ground-breaking smart phone to help them sign up bigger-spending customers and shift the balance of power in Canada's mobile market," the report said.
The inhibitor for Bell and Telus had previously been incompatibility with the iPhone on their 3G networks. However, both providers have reportedly caught up with Rogers and are prepared to offer Apple's handset.
Neither carrier would officially confirm the deal, and Apple also refused to comment on the matter. However, the report cited people familiar with the matter who said an announcement was likely to come this week.
The news comes just weeks after both
Vodafone and
Orange announced they will carry the iPhone in the U.K. in the coming months. Until now, Apple's smartphone has been exclusive to O2 in Great Britain.
Apple also entered into a
three-year deal with China Unicom to sell the iPhone in the carrier's country, but that agreement was non-exclusive. The iPhone went on sale in the country on Oct. 1. Now, Apple has
turned its attention to competitor China Mobile, the world's largest wireless carrier.
Last week, analyst Kathryn Huberty with Morgan Stanley cited the end of exclusivity in most major countries as a sign that
iPhone sales will skyrocket in the coming year. In a note to investors, Huberty predicted that Europe, China and Korea will all see near-term multi-carrier expansion, while Apple will adopt a multi-carrier model in the U.S. in the long-term.
