Brightpoint signs Verizon Wireless for carrier’s indirect channel

Brightpoint Inc. said today it would distribute handsets for Verizon Wireless’ indirect channel of authorized agents and national retailers.
Bob Laikin, chairman and CEO of Brightpoint, declined to discuss the value of the deal, citing a confidentiality agreement with Verizon. But he said that the deal was “large” and “filled a hole in Brightpoint’s portfolio.”
AT&T Mobility, the nation’s largest wireless carrier, is the only major carrier in the United States that doesn’t use Brightpoint for distribution and/or logistics, Laikin said.
The indirect channel will only grow as carriers inevitably back away from their commitment to subsidized handsets and bundles for their direct retail channels, Laikin suggested, repeating a theme he has consistently espoused for years.
The Verizon news sent Brightpoint’s stock up 3% today.
Earlier this week, Piper Jaffray analyst T. Michael Walkley cut his earnings estimates on Brightpoint, based on his research that handset sales at Sprint Nextel Corp. and T-Mobile USA Inc. were flat, month-over-month, and his view that global handset shipment growth for the year would be closer to 10% than his previous estimate of 11.5%, as reported by the Associated Press.
“Brightpoint’s first deal with Verizon Wireless further solidifies its position in the U.S. and allows it to diversify its customer base,” wrote Oppenheimer analyst Ittai Kidron in a research note today. “We view this deal as an incremental positive as Verizon sells about 45 million handsets per year, about 50% of which is through indirect channels. This also marks the first time Brightpoint will work closely with Samsung and LG in the U.S.”
Laikin said today that Brightpoint was standing by its own estimate of 9% to 10% growth for 2008. He added that August typically offers the best insight into annual shipment volumes as that is the month when carriers and resellers ship-in for the typically robust fourth quarter.
“The market is overly pessimistic,” Laikin said. “The sky is not falling. The strong will survive.”