The tie-up is expected to a see a ramping up of engineering capacity at Inuk’s South Wales operation, as it moves from a closed network provider of so call internet protocol television (IPTV) content – mainly Freeview channels to student halls of residence in the UK – to the more lucrative open internet networks market.

Both Verizon, which announced first-quarter results on Monday, and Apple declined to comment about the iPhone talks. However, people familiar with the situation said Verizon had held talks with Apple about the possibility of selling an iPhone based on 3G wireless technology called CDMA 2000. Verizon owns 55 per cent of Verizon Wireless, the leading US mobile operator. Vodafone, the UK-based mobile operator, owns the remaining 45 per cent.