Verizon upgrading network ahead of iPhone launch?

In an update to yesterday’s story that said Apple will begin mass production of a CDMA-compliant iPhone by the end of the year, the Wall Street Journal reports that Verizon has been making preparations to launch the phone on its network. According to the updated article, Verizon Wireless has been meeting with Apple over the handset, and has been adding capacity and testing its networks in hopes of avoiding the sorts of coverage issues that plagued AT&T when the proliferation of iPhones overtaxed its network. The report goes on to note that in discussions with Apple over the original iPhone, Verizon declined to give up its ability to sell music and videos through its proprietary services; it does not clarify whether Verizon’s stance on these matters has changed. Finally, the report says that Apple originally considered making a dual-mode phone that would run on both GSM and CDMA networks, but ultimately decided to build a second iPhone that would work only with CDMA networks. Verizon is expected to launch the phone early next year, according to the report, ending AT&T’s exclusivity in the U.S.