LONDON — Having missed out or opted out of the first round of selling Apple's iPhones in major territories , the world's largest mobile operator in terms of revenues, Vodafone plc (Newbury, England), will include the handset in its line-up in ten countries.

At the same time it has emerged that for the first time at least two mobile carriers will offer the device to subscribers in a single country. Both Vodafone and Telecom Italia will offer the iPhone in Italy,

In a short statement, Vodafone said it would distribute the iPhone in the Czech Republic, Egypt, Greece, Italy, India, Portugal, New Zealand, South Africa, Australia and Turkey "later this year."

There was no indication whether the models to be sold would be the ones available now, or the much anticipated 3G versions due next month in some territories. Analysts suggest the latter scenario is much more likely.

Telecom Italia also announced it would sell the iPhone in Italy sometime this year. Like Vodafone, Telecom Italia didn't provide many details.

So far, Apple has sealed exclusive deals with one operator in each country.

The deal significantly extends Apple's reach , as the iPhone is currently sold in only a handful of markets, including the U.S., the U.K., Germany, France and Spain.

Expanding internationally throughout 2008 has been repeatedly mentioned by Apple executives as a top priority in order to reach its stated goal of 10 million phones sold during the year.

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