Wal-Mart to sell postpaid service and phones from Verizon Wireless

While Wal-Mart selling prepaid wireless plans and phones from many different carriers, it generally only carries postpaid (contract required) plans from the largest U.S. wireless carrier, Cingular Wireless. However, Verizon Wireless is now moving in to muscle up some room at the nation's (and world's) largest retailer by announcing it will be selling its contract plans and phones in Wal-Mart stores where Verizon has licensed coverage available. (Verizon was booted out of Radio Shack last year for Cingular.)

With Wal-Mart being quite an impressive wireless retailer of late (unlike Circuit City, which exited the market recently), this is another example of high-tech being accessible at the store where you buy tires, milk, clothes and home furnishings. Verizon probably hopes to add many Wal-Mart shoppers to its ranks of wireless customers.

But can the overall customer base of Wal-Mart qualify for a postpaid, contract-required wireless plan? The press loves to classify Wal-Mart as servicing more of the lower-income citizens of the U.S., which doesn't exactly fit the profile of a contractual wireless buyer.