• by Wendy Davis , Staff Writer @wendyndavis, January 10, 2007

Apple's new iPhone seems to have awed virtually everyone who's seen it, at least judging by the reports out of MacWorld. The gadget certainly looks elegant, though how well it works will remain a mystery until at least June, when Apple starts selling it.

Regardless, many reporters, executives and analysts rushed to heap praise on the combined cell phone/iPod that also allows users to surf the Web. Marketing executives are especially bullish on the device and its potential to speed up mobile ads.

Their optimism isn't all that surprising. If the iPhone catches on the way the iPod did, millions of consumers will start carrying--and using--Wi-Fi-enabled video players with them everywhere they go.

At the same time, there's a real question about whether people willing to shell out $499 for a new phone are going to be all that eager to view ads on it. Even if marketers offer incentives--a free video download, say, in exchange for watching ads--it's not clear that users are going to take them up on that. Assuming that the early adopters have money to spare--which they probably do, if they're going to pay hundreds of dollars for the device--they're not going to blink at paying for ad-free music and movies.