Verizon Preparing Tiered Data Plans With iPhone 5

Shortly after landing Apple's iPhone 4, Verizon is already hinting at their financial plans for the device's successor.

Verizon Chief Financial Officer Fran Shammo said during an investor conference today that the imminent arrival of the iPhone 5 would hurt quarterly margins when it is released.

This is likely due to the costs of subsidizing new phones, which wireless operators absorb in order to make it easier for smartphone users to join their networks. Verizon hopes that it will recoup their subsidy losses on its subscribers' data usage. The company is expected to lose $5 billion to iPhone subsidies this year.

Shammo also confirmed that Verizon is close to eliminating unlimited data plans, and that the upcoming HTC Thunderbolt would set the tone for the company's future strategy. Shammo said the changes would be made as early as midsummer.

That timeframe coincides with the expected release of the iPhone 5, which, if following Apple's iPhone release schedule, will appear this June.

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