The hugely popular iPhone is coming to Canada.

Telecom giant Rogers announced Tuesday that it has brokered a deal with Apple to sell the high-tech smartphone north of the border later this year.

"We're thrilled to announce that we have a deal with Apple to bring the iPhone to Canada," said company president Ted Rogers in a statement. "We can't tell you any more about it right now, but stay tuned."

The phone allows users to listen to voice messages in the order they prefer; to select numbers by touch screen; and to watch movies in high resolution. It currently sells in the United States for between US$400 and $500.

The news came on the heels of a strong few months for Rogers, which doubled its first-quarter profits this year, reporting net earnings of $344 million. During the same period a year earlier it made $170 million.

After the iPhone's American release in June 2007, many Canadians clamoured for unlicensed "unlocked" versions that allowed users to connect the phones with Canadian mobile providers.

Phones with locked-in SIM cards allow users to connect only with service providers designated by the card.

Apple responded to the phenomenon in September by issuing an update that, once installed, made the unlocked phones unusable. Instructions on how to counter this measure is widely available, although Apple claims doimg so is "unauthorized" use of the iPhone.

Soon, Canadian fans of the phone will have an authorized chance to get in on what has proven to be one of the most in-demand cellphones on the market.

"That's good news," said Canada AM technology expert Kris Abel on Tuesday. "For a lot of people, that's the Christmas present taken care of."