IPhone sold out online in US, UK

Model with speedier Internet access might be set for June debut

Apple said both the 8-gigabyte and 16-gigabyte iPhone are unavailable online. The company declined to talk about in-store inventory. (Paul Sakuma/Associated Press)

Apple Inc.'s iPhone is sold out at its online stores in the United States and the United Kingdom, a sign that a new model with faster Internet access may be introduced soon.

"We're currently out of stock," an Apple spokeswoman said yesterday. Both the 8-gigabyte and 16-gigabyte models are unavailable. She declined to say when Apple will replenish inventory or comment on supply at retail stores.

The shortage suggests chief executive Steve Jobs is readying a new model, which may be unveiled during his speech at Apple's developer conference on June 9, Piper Jaffray & Co. analyst Gene Munster said yesterday in a report. Apple's wireless partner in the United Kingdom sold out on May 8 after cutting prices, and the Web-surfing handset is in short supply at the company's retail outlets in the United States, he said.

"The channels are running dry," said Munster, who is based in Minneapolis and recommends buying Apple shares. "The limited availability is one of several indications that the release of a new model is imminent."

Apple, based in Cupertino, Calif., rose $4.71, or 2.6 percent, to $188.16 in Nasdaq Stock Market trading. The shares have fallen 5 percent this year.

AT&T Inc., which distributes the iPhone exclusively in the United States has the device in stock at its retail stores, a spokesman said.

Jobs, who has forecast sales of 10 million iPhones for this year, is expected to unveil a model that supports faster downloads from the Internet over so-called third-generation networks, Munster said.

The device, which includes an iPod music and video player, may have a switch that lets users turn on 3G access when they want faster data speeds, and shut it off when they want to conserve battery power, he said.

Apple introduced the iPhone in the United States in June 2007. The company sold almost 4 million devices last year after broadening sales to the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. The handset holds second place behind Research In Motion Ltd.'s BlackBerry in the US market for so-called smart phones, or devices with computer and Internet functions.

Apple said yesterday that Singapore Telecommunications Ltd., Southeast Asia's largest telephone company, will offer the iPhone in four markets in Asia this year, part of a series of distribution deals revealed this month aimed at bringing the device to more international markets.

Vodafone Group PLC agreed this month to offer the iPhone in 10 markets including Australia, India, and Italy. America Movil SAB, the wireless carrier controlled by Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, said last week that it will sell the iPhone in 16 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.