AT&T sues Verizon over ‘there’s a map for that’ ads
For the cynical, the obvious conclusion here is that Ma Bell’s marketing team didn’t have anything to counter Verizon with so the company decided to hit back with a legal filing. Although there may be some merit in AT&T’s legal machinations, bringing in the lawyers is a “jump the shark” inflection point in the two companies’ increasingly nasty competition for subscribers.
The Wall Street “there’s a pay wall for that” Journal (via TUAW) reports that AT&T is suing Verizon over false and misleading claims found in the latter’s There’s a map for that TV and online advertising campaign.
The nut of AT&T’s argument is that the map Verizon uses to show the number two U.S. carrier’s spotty 3G coverage gives the false impression that the company doesn’t offer any network coverage in the white spaces denoting a lack of high-speed facilities, which isn’t true. Further, Ma Bell’s lawsuit claims that this misrepresentation of their network is causing it to lose “incalculable market share.”
For its part, Verizon says the lawsuit is without merit as the ads “clearly state” that voice and data services are available outside 3G areas. Thereupon, America’s number 3G wireless carrier says the ads were intended to inform consumers about coverage for smartphones, which are painful to use in areas without a high-speed network.
A bitter little pill
Given the bitter feelings many iPhone users have for AT&T, especially those in New York and San Francisco, and it’s seemingly endless service issues, Verizon’s cut just a little too close to the bone and Apple’s exclusive U.S. wireless partner just can’t handle the truth. Thereupon, whatever merit Ma Bell’s court filings have are almost meaningless — it will be months if not years before the carrier can expect a ruling.
Hopefully by that time, the market will have sorted out the issue in users’ favor and I’m guessing that outcome probably won’t sit well with AT&T either…
What’s your take?
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November 4th, 2009
I think the ATT lawsuit has merit. The International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 (IMT-2000),standard included Edge in the standard. EDGE can be considered a 3G radio technology and is part of ITU’s 3G definition. Verizon has conveniently left this factoid off. If they are talking broadband coverage then they need to include WIFI since ATT has a wifi network and Verizon does not. That said I think it’s a great ad and definitely highlights the differences between the two carriers.
November 4th, 2009
Edge has been consistently referred to as 2.5G. I’ve never heard it called 3G and the difference speed/latency doesn’t warrant any change.
Great point about wi-fi — they should be pushing that advantage as AT&T hotspots are everywhere.