Sprint Overdrive Sales Helped Due In Part To The iPad

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The expansion of the Apple iPad in terms of new places to purchase has been interesting. Originally the tablet was available for purchase online with Apple and in Apple retail stores. And just recently we have begun to see that expand to places like Walmart as well as the more obvious — online with AT&T and in the AT&T retail locations. Of course there was also the news that Verizon was going to begin selling the iPad Wi-Fi with the bundled MiFi hotspot modem.

Bearing in mind, that news of Verizon and the iPad almost seemed like a non-announcement at the time. But after reading some of these recent statements from Sprint CEO Dan Hesse, we have to wonder if Verizon is really onto something good.

And that brings us to Sprint, who have never directly sold the iPad, and thus far have not announced any plans to sell the iPad. Granted, when asked by Om Malik, Sprint CEO Dane Hesse commented that, “his company wasn’t publicly linked to the iPhone, he declined to comment and politely added that Sprint doesn’t comment on its relationship with vendors and the conversations it has with third parties.”

Presumably we can factor the ‘iPhone’ in that statement to also include the iPad. But more important are some of the other statements made by Hesse during that same conversation with Om Malik. Statements along the lines of how the iPad has helped sales of the Overdrive wireless hotspot modem. Hmm, maybe Verizon really is onto something with the iPad and MiFi bundle.

“Dan Hesse, CEO of the third-largest carrier in the U.S., told me in an interview that most iPads being sold are of the Wi-Fi variety, and as a result, the company has seen an uptick in demand for its Overdrive (3G/4G) MiFi wireless-hotspot device, as people use it to connect their iPads to the Internet when on the go.”

In the end, while it seems Sprint is (at least in part) grateful for the help they received from the Wi-Fi only iPad, they are still moving forward with concentration on two mobile platforms — Android and BlackBerry.