Will Sprint Get an iPhone for the Holidays?

Now that Apple’s embraced carrier agnosticism in the States, who will be next to get the iPhone?

Sprint, most likely.

Indeed, Citadel Securities analyst Shing Yin believes we’ll see the device added to Sprint’s portfolio before the end of the year, ahead of the winter holidays. And really, such a deal would be in the best interest of both companies. Certainly, Sprint would benefit from a little vitamin i. And, strategically, Apple would be wise to distribute the iPhone on what, beginning tomorrow, will be the lone U.S. carrier with an unlimited data plan offering.

“Although Sprint is unlikely to price the device lower than its peers, its smartphone service plans are lower-priced than comparable plans from AT&T and Verizon,” Shin says. “As such, we believe a Sprint iPhone could offer an attractive proposition for more price-conscious users. Based on this differentiation, we believe a Sprint iPhone could be a relatively stronger seller than the Verizon iPhone, given Verizon largely offers the same value proposition as AT&T. We believe Sprint could capture more than its fair share of iPhone sales, especially if it gets the new model at the same time as AT&T and Verizon.”

Seems plausible — if there is a deal. And right now, no one’s talking. Asked about a potential iPhone deal with Apple during Sprint’s last earnings call, CEO Dan Hesse dodged, saying: “What is this — like the 55th time I’ve been asked that one? Something like that. And of course we can’t comment on any potential discussions with any of our suppliers.”

Anyway, more iPhone grist for the Apple rumor mill …