Apple Reportedly Seals iPhone Deal in Japan

CIO Today reports that rumors in the Japanese press state "Apple (AAPL) and Japanese telecom company Softbank have struck a "basic deal" to produce the iPhone." According to reports, Steve Jobs, Apple's chief executive, and Masayoshi Son, president of Softbank, met this past weekend, and suposedly discussed "a new component to iTunes. The new service would enable mobile-phone users to download songs directly to compatible handsets from iTunes."

Recently Gene Munster at Piper Jaffray wrote, "We believe Apple will benefit from the new Intel-based Macs, along with what we estimate to be a 75 percent chance of an iPhone in the next 12 months."