The good news is that one of those rumored imminent firmware updates for Verizon's Storm has just materialized -- the bad news, though, is that it's not available to the unwashed masses just yet. For now, the only way to get version 4.7.0.75 (compared to the 4.7.0.65 launch build) is to have a super on-the-ball BES admin who's pushed the update out to his / her Storm users; non-BES users are still in the dark, but we're hearing those folks (read: the overwhelming majority) should get it within a week or two. Let's hope, eh?

It looks like HTC jumped the gun here just a little bit for two reasons: first, we've yet to hear a single peep (officially, anyway) from Verizon about its Touch Pro's existence, and second, the "Buy Now" link on the product page takes you to... wait for it... Sprint. We don't know much, but we know that ain't right. Anyway, hang tight, folks, because we're still hoping for a release this week -- we've heard rumors that it may have been pushed back, but from the looks of things on HTC's end, they'd just as soon get this thing out the door on the double.

For those of you who firmly believe that Verizon plus Motorola plus touchscreen equals pure, unadulterated bliss, heads up: we have a bit of information that might be of interest to you. phoneArena has scored a screen shot of what appears to be some promotional material for Moto's upcoming MING-esque doohickey, the Krave ZN4 -- and it looks like we'll be shelling out about $150 on a two-year contract for the honor of carrying one in our knockoff Louis Vuitton backpacks. Not a bad price for a phone clearly designed to rest toward the upper end of Verizon's non-smartphone lineup, we suppose, and we'll admit that it's looking better in this dolled-up promo shot than it was last time we saw it. Separately, they've landed pricing for the Moto VU204, a basic flip that's probably not going to turn as many heads as the Krave; that one is going to go out the door for $29, and you'll get three free with the purchase of the first for the ultimate four-pack of mediocrity. We don't have a solid line on when these are coming to market, but the Krave's still a possibility for this month.

We're calling it -- the closest thing we yanks have to a MING is gracing Verizon on October 14 for $149.99 on a two-year contract after $50 rebate. Full retail for the Krave ZN4 will run $349.99, for those so inclined. Entertain yourself with a little press photography in the meantime, won't you?

If you've been dying for the full rundown on Motorola's upcoming low-end VU204 flip for Verizon -- well, first of all, bless your heart. Secondly, here you are. Key features include a VGA cam, Bluetooth, GPS, 220 x 176 primary and 96 x 80 secondary displays, and styling that'll make passers-by think you opted for the pricier VU30. After rebate and a signature on the dotted line, it'll run $29.99 ($199.99 commitment-free) when it launches on October 14.

The Apple/AT&T iPhone had a minimal impact on them, according to chief operating officer Denny Strigl.

The report noted that verizon lost over 11 percent of their landline customers as they steadily moved to wireless and cable-based phones. Verizon also had a drop in its DSL customers as customers moved to FiOS (optic fiber) services which more than offset the loss.

Verizon is another company that appears to be recession proof. Investors had been expecting Verizon to suffer, but the rapid customer moves to wireless and cable phone services offset possible losses.

Mr. Strigl, according to the AP, said the company was "seeing what it believes is a 'minimal short-term impact' in customer flow due to the iPhone. He also said the effect looks small relative to the size of Verizon Wireless, suggesting that most new iPhone customers who aren't already on AT&T are coming from other carriers, like Sprint Nextel Corp."

With the recent acquisition of Alltel for US$28.1B, Verizon is now larger than AT&T.

The iPhone 3G, which sold over a million units in its first weekend, was released on July 11, after the close of Verizon's second quarter. Prior to that, Apple had sold out of iPhone 2Gs in mid-May.