Indeed the numbers dont lie it costs Verizon no more to sell WP7 than it does android or ios. Reasons short of the truth not to carry a decent device are excuses its that simple. (truth is they are pissed at MS )
In fact I would argue it costs them money not having a legitimate WP7 offering... afterall I left to AT&T because of it. Lost sales especially in data plans (contracts) do not make
them MORE money.
I would also argue that it costs them LESS to sell addtional WP7 devices than it does android since the UI and OS is the same for all devices.
I would offer proof of their excuses: VZW stated they turned down the Nokia device due to not having LTE support and they want ALL their smart phones to have LTE built in. ALTHOUGH .. they have the iPhone 4s. Hmm...
Why dont they just come out and state they are pissed at MS? Then WP7 enthusiasts can just switch carriers and stop wondering if a decent WP7 device will ever come to VZW.
Oh.. and first generation WP7 devices are not mediocre.. in fact I'm still using an i917.. it makes the trophy look ... well.. mediocre
Next stop.. LUMIA 900