Verizon CEO takes credit for LTE-enabled iPhone, says 50% of mobile traffic is now video

The chief executive of Verizon (VZ) revealed on Wednesday that video streaming accounts for 50% of the carrier’s network traffic, FierceWireless reported. Speaking at the National Association of Broadcasters, CEO Lowell McAdam noted that the company’s investment in its high-speed LTE network has benefited its customers and made high-quality streaming video possible. The executive said that with 3G you could only watch small video clips that would require tons of buffering, however with 4G LTE there are endless possibilities. Verizon believes streaming video will continue to be popular with its customers and estimates that by 2017 it could make up two-thirds on all traffic over its network. The CEO previously revealed that 23% of its wireless subscribers were using LTE smartphones as of January. McAdam also noted that Apple added LTE capabilities to the iPhone 5 only after he met with Steve Jobs and sold him on the benefits of the new high-speed technology.