With the explosion of wireless data transfer with the release of the iPhone, carriers have to invest and upgrade their network at a light speed rate to provide the expected customer experience and reliability of the entire network. An analyst from TownHall Investment Research, Gerard Hallaren, indicates that AT&T is investing disproportionately in its wired network infrastructure whereas its wireless service and corresponding customer satisfaction lag behind other carriers. According to the analyst, AT&T would have to invest an additional 5 billion USD to upgrade its wireless infrastructure to the level of its biggest competitor, Verizon Wireless.
If Verizon spend 5 billion more than AT&T on its network over the last 3 years, this difference in spending is becoming huge and might explain why Apple also decided to stop exclusive partnership in USA, as Verizon network is known for being more reliable than the one from a AT&T till it is really tested
