• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, October 12, 2010

The Verizon iPhone is sounding more and more like a reality next year, leading to speculation about what kind of campaign the company would run to promote the long-awaited marriage of phone and service provider.

Given the growing buzz around reports Apple is building an iPhone compatible with Verizon's CDMA network, and long-standing demand for a Verizon iPhone, it would seem a formal ad push behind the actual device might be superfluous. But Verizon isn't reluctant to throw big money behind new phones, and the carrier will certainly want to shout about finally having the signature Apple device.

The question is, what will the ads say? First there's the issue of Verizon taking direct aim at the iPhone with its "Droid Does" campaign last year, highlighting shortcomings of the device compared to its new Android-based rival. And of course there was the "There's a map for that" campaign, which mainly targeted AT&T's 3G network but also took an obvious swipe at Apple's "There's an app for that" ads.

At the time, some speculated that Verizon's attack on the iPhone in the initial Droid ads meant the carrier was forsaking any chance of getting the device. But in the ever-shifting alliances and battlegrounds of the telecom business, one's enemy today can be one's best friend tomorrow. Still, any iPhone-bashing ads on behalf of the Droid or other phones carried by Verizon would come to an end.

At the same time, the iPhone itself is a known commodity, so it doesn't necessarily need the over-the-top, cinematic type of ads Verizon ran to launch the Droid. A campaign would simply have to convey that Verizon has the iPhone, for real. To that end, it's not hard to imagine a tag line like "The world's best phone on the country's best network," or "The dream team you've been waiting for" over an image of the iPhone and Verizon logo.

Verizon may also want to take some shots at AT&T's much publicized difficulties providing reliable service to iPhone customers, especially in New York and San Francisco. After all, AT&T would lose exclusivity if Verizon gets the iPhone, but it will continue selling it. That sets up an iPhone versus iPhone battle that could be highlighted in ads.

Since settling litigation in 2009 over Verizon's ads mocking AT&T's 3G coverage, the ad war between the two wireless giants has been relatively quiet. But that could change with the arrival of a Verizon iPhone. In that vein, maybe something like, "Finally, an iPhone without dropped calls," or "Imagine an iPhone without the frustration."

Apple, of course, might not be so pleased with the idea of Verizon promoting a "good" iPhone over a "bad" one. A less confrontational approach might have Verizon portraying itself as the "liberator" of the iPhone after years of being bound to a single carrier.

An ad could be set to any number of songs celebrating the notion of freedom, e.g, "Freebird," "Exodus," "If You Love Somebody Set Them Free," or "Chimes of Freedom," paired with a message like "The Verizon iPhone. Now you have freedom of choice."

Any Verizon iPhone campaign, though, could provoke a response from AT&T. Its best line of attack would be to highlight the fact that Verizon iPhone customers can't surf the Web or use use email while talking on the phone because of how Verizon's CDMA network works. AT&T has previously touted that advantage of its GSM network, and might return to that theme in the face of a Verizon iPhone.

Or it could just choose to highlight that it has three new Windows Phone 7 devices while Verizon has none (for now).

How do you think Verizon should promote the iPhone? How should AT&T respond?