As expected, a number of developers expect Apple to use iTunes as the main means of delivering iPhone applications to customers. They view this as the best and worst of worlds. Over at MobileContentToday, Managing Editor Susan Schrank writes:

A post on Wired.com says that when Apple releases the upcoming iPhone software developer's kit, it might well use the iTunes Store as the "primary distribution vehicle" for all those third-party applications that will come from what's expected to be a large community of developers.

The article includes a quote from Mac application developer Daniel Jalkut that probably sums up the general feeling on the matter:

"I think a lot of developers simultaneously see this as the best thing and the worst thing in the world. The feeling is: 'Oh no, Apple is going to set up this stronghold where [developers] can't set their own prices or have control.' But personally, I think a lot of them trust Apple enough that they'd be willing to make that trade-off."

Of course, as Wired points out, even if Apple does sell the iPhone apps through iTunes, it won't necessarily be the only place to get them. Although, considering that estimates put the number of iTunes users at more than 35 million, maybe that wouldn't be so bad.

Meanwhile, the iPhone has dramaticlly increased data consumpion for AT&T, a trend the introduction of official iPhone applications will not doubt continue. In another post on MobileContentToday, Schrank writes:

"There isn't a device that's easier to use," AT&T Mobility president and CEO Ralph de la Vega said during his keynote at the Mobile World Congress, according to a report in FierceMobileContent. He also called the Apple device "a game-changer," saying that data consumption on AT&T's wireless networks has increased significantly since the iPhone's launch in June. 

De la Vega told the audience that 95% of iPhone users surf the Web via mobile on a regular basis, something that 30% of them had never done before, FierceMobileContent says.

The article cited some other statistics from de la Vega as well:

-51% of iPhone owners have used the device to watch videos on YouTube.
-9 out of 10 like the iPhone better than their previous cell phone.
-13% of AT&T customers have a 3G device.
-12% own integrated devices.
-ARPU for customers with a 3G device is 20% higher than for customers with a 2G device; for customers with an integrated device, it's 120% higher.