Verizon Wireless said Friday it will hold a press conference on Jan. 11, reigniting rumors that it will become the second U.S. carrier to sell Apple's iPhone.

The company delivered cryptic invitations on Friday to an event to Tuesday's New York event: "Join us as we share the latest news from Verizon Wireless," the invitation read.

Citing a person familiar with the matter, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that Verizon will announce that it will become the second company to sell Apple's iPhone, which is currently exclusively available by AT&T.

Apple's iPad is available through Verizon.

Verizon declined to comment.

At the International Consumer Electronics Show this week in Las Vegas, Verizon already made news with phones and tablets that will run on its high-speed, next-generation 4G wireless network. So it's significant that Verizon will still have an announcement big enough to warrant a press conference in New York a week later.

Verizon?s intentions to unveil an iPhone running on the company?s CDMA network early this year have long been known.

Consumer surveys suggest that demand for a Verizon iPhone would be large, as many people have held off from buying an iPhone simply to avoid AT&T?s much-publicized network problems.