New Verizon ad mocks Apple, AT&T: 'There's a map for that'

[AppleInsider]

Taking on AT&T and the iPhone directly, Verizon's latest TV ad mocks Apple's App Store slogan by comparing its nationwide 3G coverage map with its competitor.

Apple's iPhone advertisements have famously touted that "There's an app for that," concluding in the end that there is "an app for just about anything." In its latest TV spot, Verizon Wireless parodies Apple's tag line while criticizing the 3G coverage of the next-largest wireless carrier in the U.S., and the exclusive provider of the iPhone, AT&T.

"If you want to know why your 3G coverage works so well on Verizon Wireless," the commercial's voiceover says as a Verizon customer uses his phone, "there's a map for that."

The real punchline of the commercial, though, is when it directly takes on AT&T, and compares Verizon's coverage map.

"If you want to know why some people have spotty 3G coverage," the ad notes as an AT&T customer crosses his path, "there's a map for that too."



As competition begins to heat up between Verizon and AT&T, the nation's largest wireless carrier has also scheduled a press conference Tuesday with Google, presumably to announce its first Android-powered phone.

Earlier this year, Apple came under fire for its App Store advertisement claims in the U.K, when a handful of users complained to the Advertising Standards Authority about the claim that there is an app for anything. Specifically, users believed that the Android Marketplace also offered a range of applications, just like the iPhone. But after it reviewed the case, the ASA sided with Apple and declared that its slogan was justifiable.



But Apple didn't fare as well in a complaint over advertisements in which the company said that "all parts of the Internet are on the iPhone. In that 2008 decision, the ASA ruled that the commercials were misleading because the iPhone does not support Flash or Java, two proprietary technologies that sometimes prove integral in the display of certain Web pages.

[PatsFan83]

Yep, that pretty much says it all. Remember when everyone complained because the iPhone wasn't 3G? ATT wasn't ready.

Nice ad.

[randythot]

Originally Posted by PatsFan83

Yep, that pretty much says it all. Remember when everyone complained because the iPhone wasn't 3G? ATT wasn't ready.

Nice ad.

Hope this isn't true for 4G for AT&T, otherwise matching billions to Verizon's investment in their network is only maintaining their gap. It really sounds like AT&T also knows their 3G technology is fundamentally no where near as good as CDMA 3G technology, and not worth the investment?

[Rot'nApple]

Cute play on Apple's ad, "There's an app for that!"

But just "painting a map red" does not mean you'll get that coverage?

What recourse, as a Verizon consumer, does one have when they don't receive 3G service for whatever reason... tall trees, tall buildings, mountains, whatever, can they then sue Verizon for false advertising?

Anybody out there with Verizon service that found they were unable to receive 3G service and then looked at Verizons map commercial and saw that Verizon said they have 3G service? Makes you stop and think for a moment!

[Quadra 610]

Doesn't mean squat when everyone and their dog is dying to get an iPhone and is perfectly willing to put up with AT&T.

It's all fun and games . . . until Verizon gets the iPhone.

Had Apple gone with Verizon, Verizon would have experienced the same crushing pressure on its network.

No one was fully prepared for what the iPhone brought to the table.

[lopsided]

When I first read the headline I thought, yikes, if Verizon is attacking the iPhone does that mean they're not going to get it anytime soon? But then after watching the ad, it's clear they're mainly attacking AT&T's network.

In some ways the ad is a nice set up for launching the iphone next year. First they attack AT&T's network and then they tell people if they want both the iphone and a great 3g network, come on over to Verizon.

[Dlux]

Originally Posted by randythot

It really sounds like AT&T also knows their 3G technology is fundamentally no where near as good as CDMA 3G technology, and not worth the investment?

I don't think it's a GSM vs. CDMA technology issue, so much as a difference between the number of towers each carrier deploys.

And as far as I have read, the cellular radio/technology difference will disappear completely when they both deploy the same 4G/LTE standard in the future. Then it really will boil down to who has the most towers.

[ivan.rnn01]

Oh, yeah... VZW Voice coverage is compared to AT&T's true 3G data coverage.

[hittrj01]

Originally Posted by ivan.rnn01

Oh, yeah... VZW Voice coverage is compared to AT&T's true 3G data coverage.

I was just about to say the same thing. Yet another case of false advertising, except nobody sues unless it's Apple. Verizon's 3G coverage is still a little larger than AT&T's, but it's nowhere near the 5x increase Verizon would lead you to believe, and I would love to see how Verizon's network would handle a heavily used data phone like the iPhone, whether their network would buckle or not as well.

[bloggerblog]

I do not like ATT, and as soon as the iPhone opens up to other providers I'll most probably switch, but I think ATT will adjust their prices competitively when that happens.
Having said that, I get 3G and phone coverage in areas around VA and MD with ATT where Verizon and Sprint get ZERO bars! places such as Deep Creek, MD.

[teckstud]

"If you want to know why your 3G coverage works so well on Verizon Wireless," the commercial's voiceover says as a Verizon customer uses his phone, "there's a map for that."The real punchline of the commercial, though, is when it directly takes on AT&T, and compares Verizon's coverage map.

"If you want to know why some people have spotty 3G coverage," the ad notes as an AT&T customer crosses his path, "there's a map for that too."

Blasphemy!
When does Apple file suit for infringement on their slogan?

[digitalclips]

Originally Posted by Rot'nApple

Cute play on Apple's ad, "There's an app for that!"

But just "painting a map red" does not mean you'll get that coverage?

What recourse, as a Verizon consumer, does one have when they don't receive 3G service for whatever reason... tall trees, tall buildings, mountains, whatever, can they then sue Verizon for false advertising?

Anybody out there with Verizon service that found they were unable to receive 3G service and then looked at Verizons map commercial and saw that Verizon said they have 3G service? Makes you stop and think for a moment!

I am not passing any judgement on the article or the ad but I am surprised Apple didn't get some copyright coverage on the exact phrase "There's an app for that!".

[teckstud]

Originally Posted by digitalclips

I am not passing any judgement on the article or the ad but I am surprised Apple didn't get some copyright coverage on the exact phrase "There's an app for that!".

Give it up.
Why didn't Apple sue Microsoft for it's retort of "I'm a PC" too for that matter? That's used verbatim, not so here.

[Maestro64]

Kind of looks like wasteful spending on Verizon part, spending money for 3G infrastructure in low population density areas makes it hard to recover that investment. Now Verizon is going to invest billions again for 4G hopefully for their stock holders they will invest more wisely and spend the money where they can recover the investment vest put it out in the mid west where they i about 1 person for ever square mile.

[DJRumpy]

Here are the coverage maps specific to data:

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/C...atorController

http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/

You have to click on the 'Enhanced Services' map on the Verizon site to see their data coverage and then click the red Refresh Map button. I didn't really see any difference in the 'voice' and 'data' map for AT&T.

[roehlstation]

I don't live in the middle of Montana, so it doesn't matter to me either way, I'm in a saturated zone in either carrier. Easy decision, AT&T HAS the iPhone, Verizon does NOT.

[BenRoethig]

Originally Posted by randythot

Hope this isn't true for 4G for AT&T, otherwise matching billions to Verizon's investment in their network is only maintaining their gap. It really sounds like AT&T also knows their 3G technology is fundamentally no where near as good as CDMA 3G technology, and not worth the investment?

Or they're just cheap. Why make major investments in infrastructure when they're going to buy the iPhone anyway.

Originally Posted by Quadra 610

Doesn't mean squat when everyone and their dog is dying to get an iPhone and is perfectly willing to put up with AT&T.

It's all fun and games . . . until Verizon gets the iPhone.

Had Apple gone with Verizon, Verizon would have experienced the same crushing pressure on its network.

No one was fully prepared for what the iPhone brought to the table.

Maybe, but Verizon actually has a comprehensive 3G network. AT&T has a handful of test spots so that they can say they have 3G, the vast majority of the network is still 2G.

[ivan.rnn01]

Originally Posted by hittrj01

I was just about to say the same thing. Yet another case of false advertising, except nobody sues unless it's Apple. Verizon's 3G coverage is still a little larger than AT&T's, but it's nowhere near the 5x increase Verizon would lead you to believe, and I would love to see how Verizon's network would handle a heavily used data phone like the iPhone, whether their network would buckle or not as well.

Shame. Barbaric wildness. No one should be allowed to name competitors openly in ads.

[dblanch369]

Huh, hey Verizon, AT&T may suck, but you're no better...

Here's a truthful one about verizon - "You want that feature enabled on your phone? There's a charge for that"

Wireless companies are all a bunch of smarmy crooks IMHO.

[teckstud]

Originally Posted by ivan.rnn01

Shame. Barbaric wildness. No one should be allowed to name competitors openly in ads.

Attack ads are becoming very commonplace here. Not that they're very effective- just look how Apple has been attacking Microsoft relentlessly for the last five years yet barely moved into double digits of share.

Now you should see our elections' ads!

[ivan.rnn01]

Originally Posted by DJRumpy

Here are the coverage maps specific to data:

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/C...atorController

http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/

You have to click on the 'Enhanced Services' map on the Verizon site to see their data coverage and then click the red Refresh Map button. I didn't really see any difference in the 'voice' and 'data' map for AT&T.

Zoom in AT&T's data coverage. You'll see what VZW mean. They count only true broadband 3G when it comes to AT&T.

[aaarrrgggh]

If only the coverage maps told the true story. I am in a "best" voice coverage area with 3g service according to ATT, but on the ground reality is quite different. Not sure if Verizon would really do any better with the iPhone, based on analyst estimates that roughly the same percentages of VZW users would get the iPhone as at&t.

[dtidmore]

For the past 4 years I have utilized Verizon's Broadband Wireless service extensively. About a year ago I did a personal comparison to AT&T's 3G Broadband Wireless and more recently, I played with tethering the iPhone.

When I initially tested AT&T's 3G broadband, I was both pleased and underwhelmed as when it was good, it was excellent but it was VERY inconsistent regardless of signal strength (I am in the Dallas area and both carriers have extensive broadband networks). The AT&T download speeds would burst upto 2+Mb/sec but then would fall to around 200Kb all within a few seconds. It was just not consistent enough for me to even seriously consider dropping Verizon.

My more recent comparison of tethered iphone vs Verizon was much more favorable to AT&T. Verizon's EVDO at it VERY best serves up about 1Mb with a more typical 700-800Kb speeds. The tethered iphone CONSISTENTLY served up 1.5Mb to 2.5Mb, with none of the drops into the toilet that I had experienced in my previous comparison.

There is no question that Verizon has a MUCH broader coverage for their EVDO broadband wireless service as I have traveled around the country with both my 3G iPhone and my EVDO Verizon card. With EVDO, I seldom see the card falling back to the older Verizon network, while AT&T still suffers from incursions off into EDGE.

The latency of the two networks is roughly equivalent running around 100-150msec.

So, at least in the north Dallas area, AT&T currently serves up about TWICE the speeds.

For the road warrior, Verizon is the way to go as they truly have vastly better nationwide coverage. My plan is to stick with Verizon for Broadband wireless for the timebeing and see how Verizon's LTE rollout progresses. As the LTE specs allows for fallback to EVDO, my feeling is that Verizon will remain king of the hill since falling back to EVDO from LTE with the excellent nationwide coverage is preferable to dropping from LTE to EDGE on AT&T due to their more metro-centric 3G coverage.

david

[Roc Ingersol]

Now that's pretty funny.

[DJRumpy]

Originally Posted by ivan.rnn01

Zoom in AT&T's data coverage. You'll see what VZW mean. They count only true broadband 3G when it comes to AT&T.

Not sure what your trying to point out to me. I live in a major city. I've never dropped to 2G/Edge so this whole add is rather irrelevant to me. I just posted their maps so that anyone interested could take a peek.

[ivan.rnn01]

Originally Posted by teckstud

Attack ads are becoming very commonplace here. Not that they're very effective- just look how Apple has been attacking Microsoft relentlessly for the last five years yet barely moved into double digits of share.

And they came to almost the same disgusting end. "Lots of viruses... lots of viruses... lots of viruses..."

Originally Posted by teckstud

Now you should see our elections' ads!

I'd prefer not to.

[piot]

Originally Posted by AppleInsider

Earlier this year, Apple came under fire for its App Store advertisement claims in the U.K, when a handful of users complained to the Advertising Standards Authority about the claim that there is an app for anything. Specifically, users believed that the Android Marketplace also offered a range of applications, just like the iPhone. But after it reviewed the case, the ASA sided with Apple and declared that its slogan was justifiable.


But Apple didn't fare as well in a complaint over advertisements in which the company said that "all parts of the Internet are on the iPhone. In that 2008 decision, the ASA ruled that the commercials were misleading because the iPhone does not support Flash or Java, two proprietary technologies that sometimes prove integral in the display of certain Web pages.

What has any of this got to do with AT&T vs Verizon's 3G coverage ?

[ivan.rnn01]

Originally Posted by DJRumpy

Not sure what your trying to point out to me. I live in a major city. I've never dropped to 2G/Edge so this whole add is rather irrelevant to me. I just posted their maps so that anyone interested could take a peek.

I was just trying to explain how exactly maps, having been shown in the ad, were fabricated. I don't think your post is clear enough.

[2 cents]

I don't know about maps but I do know that I always have bars here in a semi-rural part of CT but when my friend came up from NYC with his verizon phone, he was incommunicado for the whole weekend. I guess it was a verizon-induced vacation but it frustrated the beejebus out him.

[piot]

Originally Posted by teckstud

- just look how Apple has been attacking Microsoft relentlessly for the last five years yet barely moved into double digits of share.

or... in the real world...

-just look how Apple has been attacking Microsoft relentlessly for the last five years and have moved from selling 3.5 million Macs a year to over 10 million a year.

[Jerseymac]

Just give everyone their choice of providers. Then everyone will be happy and Apple will rule the world.

[teckstud]

Originally Posted by piot

or... in the real world...

-just look how Apple has been attacking Microsoft relentlessly for the last five years and have moved from selling 3.5 million Macs a year to over 10 million a year.

That's due to iPods and iPhones my friend, not Justin Long. Not to mention Vista.

[souliisoul]

Originally Posted by piot

or... in the real world...

-just look how Apple has been attacking Microsoft relentlessly for the last five years and have moved from selling 3.5 million Macs a year to over 10 million a year.

That's great but marketshare in the real world counts and Teckstud is correct.

I go to my shareholders and say hey people increase are sales from 3.5 million to 10 million Mac in 5 years, the savvy shareholder will ask the question, How is your marketshare improved in major markets over the last 5 years.

Yes there will love the increase in sales, but if you say I gone from 7% marketshare to 15%, there will love you even more with above sales figures!

One thing that positive to me, as shareholder is that my shares are worth more than 10 years ago. I will sell them when I retire. My trip around the world money :-)

[Maestro64]

Originally Posted by DJRumpy

Here are the coverage maps specific to data:

http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/C...atorController

http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/

You have to click on the 'Enhanced Services' map on the Verizon site to see their data coverage and then click the red Refresh Map button. I didn't really see any difference in the 'voice' and 'data' map for AT&T.

Actually if you look at those maps, it appears Verizon used their total Digital coverage map against AT&T 3G coverage map. It does not seem like an Apple to Apple comparison (pun intended) Verizon's Digital coverage is phone services since CDMA is digital, they should show AT&T's GSM to make the comparison the same.

[stickyd]

Originally Posted by PatsFan83

Yep, that pretty much says it all. Remember when everyone complained because the iPhone wasn't 3G? ATT wasn't ready.

Nice ad.

This is not true! The reason there wasn't an original 3G iPhone was b/c of 3G chipset consumed too much power for the size and type of device they wanted to create. Plus, that was 3 years ago!

I have excellent 3G service in NC, so I have no complaints with AT&T. I think things will be much better with the introduction of LTE. No need to invest too much time and money into a 3G network that will be obsolete in a year or so.

And as far as Verizon goes..........they need to concentrate on getting some good devices on their network b/c it's pointless to have a self-proclaimed "Best 3G Coverage" if there aren't any devices worth a shit to use the network.

Bottom line, all carriers have their short-comings. AT&T claims to have the fastest 3G speeds while Verizon claims to have more coverage. If you are that hell-bent one way or another, just switch networks and/or devices and shut up. Geezzzzz!

[Quadra 610]

Originally Posted by teckstud

Attack ads are becoming very commonplace here. Not that they're very effective- just look how Apple has been attacking Microsoft relentlessly for the last five years yet barely moved into double digits of share.

Now you should see our elections' ads!

Apple functions in the Premium end of the market. Apple shuns the low end and locks out a good portion of the mid-end. Margin over volume. And it's a brilliant strategy.

[Hudson1]

It's hard to get really solid info but, according to both a Verizon Wireless rep and a few forum postings, EVDO can't do tethered data and voice simultaneously.

By contrast, AT&T's 3G network, according to some people, is capable of simultaneous voice and tethered data.

That's a key difference if you rely on your mobile phone for broadband access with your computer.

[Maestro64]

Originally Posted by souliisoul

That's great but marketshare in the real world counts and Teckstud is correct.

I go to my shareholders and say hey people increase are sales from 3.5 million to 10 million Mac in 5 years, the savvy shareholder will ask the question, How is your marketshare improved in major markets over the last 5 years.

Yes there will love the increase in sales, but if you say I gone from 7% marketshare to 15%, there will love you even more with above sales figures!

One thing that positive to me, as shareholder is that my shares are worth more than 10 years ago. I will sell them when I retire. My trip around the world money :-)

Actually stock price is the only thing that counts, let see my apple stock i bough in 2000 went form 10 to 180 today and MS stock went from 50 to 25 today. That is doing really well for the investor who is investing in your ideas and products.

ops correction my $10 stock is now worth $190 today

[NOFEER]

Originally Posted by Quadra 610

Doesn't mean squat when everyone and their dog is dying to get an iPhone and is perfectly willing to put up with AT&T.

It's all fun and games . . . until Verizon gets the iPhone.

Had Apple gone with Verizon, Verizon would have experienced the same crushing pressure on its network.

No one was fully prepared for what the iPhone brought to the table.

great post, and its because of the iphone demand, verizon figures with other countries going to multi carriers it should get in on the act, so now after their "ceo" resigns, or leaves, does verizon want to say hey, we should of had a v8 (iphone)
they are kicking themselves for not "dealing" with the iphone and SJ,
let them eat cake, so the only hope verizon has is LTE 4g.
so should verizon have a new commercial?

"it really isn't the network, its this cool, must have iphone, and till we get it we will through garbage phones at you, cripple them, and tell you its really raining outside"


my biggest prob with verizon is how it cripples phones, my friend had the same phone i did, but verizon turned off his BT so i could do voice dialing, and transfering and he couldn't, will verizon lock out iphone functionality to sell its own junk???

[Roc Ingersol]

Originally Posted by souliisoul

That's great but marketshare in the real world counts

No, it doesn't.
What counts is profit. Return on Investment. That's it.

Apple can stay at 5% market share forever and so long as they're pulling down obscene profit on their investments the savvy shareholder is going to be far, far happier with them than Dell, Microsoft and HP.