An employee assists a customer with an Apple Inc. iPhone at an AT&T Inc. store in Newport Beach, California, U.S., on Thursday, Aug. 10, 2017. AT&T Inc. shares surged the most in more than eight years after the telecommunications giant posted a surprise wireless subscriber gain in the second quarter, showing it can fend for itself in a cutthroat price war. An offer for unlimited wireless data, bundled with discounted streaming-TV service, helping AT&T bide its time while awaiting regulatory approval to transform into a media powerhouse through the $85.4 billion purchase of Time Warner Inc. Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg
A new iPhone means another opportunity for America’s wireless companies to engage in a knock-down, drag-out price war – if the carriers still have the stomach for it.
Apple Inc is expected to drop the latest version of its best-selling device as soon as next month, a year after its last upgrade spurred freebies from the four biggest wireless carriers. T-Mobile US Inc was first to let new or existing customers trade in an iPhone 6 for an iPhone 7, and Sprint Corp, Verizon Communications Inc and AT&T Inc quickly followed with their own matching deals.
