According to Korea Times, Apple is in the midst of talking with Korean carriers about LTE service for the new iPhone/iPhone 5. The two major carriers in Korea are SK Telecom and TK, and according to this report, Apple has been talking to both companies about LTE on the phone.
An unidentified KT senior executive is quoted as saying “KT is in negotiation with Apple to persuade the latter to support KT’s 1.8-gigahertz frequency in Korea for the upcoming iPhone.”
In Korea, as in the USA, the two largest carriers have different LTE spectrums, so if the new iPhone were to support this technology, it would have to straddle both.
The new iPhone has heavily been rumored to have LTE capabilities for some time, and the technology seems mature enough enough that Apple might finally adopt it. However, Korea Times has a spotty track record with reporting rumors, giving us such gems as as Apple launching a 4G, OLED iPhone in 2010. It’s still pretty likely that the new iPhone 5 will have LTE, but be careful of the specifics from a report like this.
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