Verizon (VZ) doesn’t want to be pigeonholed as a carrier that only offers the iPhone and several Android smartphones. And that’s why, going forward, Verizon Wireless will expand its smartphone portfolio to include “multiple” Windows Phone 8 devices in the fourth quarter, the company’s chief marketing officer Tami Erwin told CNET. Erwin also confirmed that Verizon would sell a BlackBerry 10 smartphone once Research in Motion(RIMM) launches the platform in the first quarter of 2013.
Verizon isn’t specifically committing to Nokia (NOK) Windows Phone 8 devices yet, however, as Verizon COO Marni Walden would only say that Verizon will “continue to have healthy conversations” with the Finnish smartphone manufacturer. The executive praised Nokia for its work in design, use of color and its portfolio of accessories, but added that the company still needs to work harder to gain more market share in the U.S.
