Verizon responds to AT&T in court: 'The truth hurts'
Verizon filed an aggressive legal response Monday as part of its ongoing defense against AT&T, accusing its competitor of overreacting to "the truth" of its wireless data service.
The latest filing on behalf of Verizon Wireless was in response to the latest request by AT&T to pull a series of ads from the air which highlight the disparity between the two companies' 3G data networks. The legal response holds no punches and is aggressive from the introduction: "AT&T did not file this lawsuit because Verizon's "There's A Map For That" advertisements are untrue; AT&T sued because Verizon's ads are true and the truth hurts."
Verizon's filing was issued in response to AT&T, which asserted that Verizon's ads are "false and misleading" because they confuse customers into believing that AT&T has no coverage in the areas highlighted as being devoid of 3G coverage.
Verizon's conclusion filed Monday in an Atlanta court maintains the tone set out from the start: "In the final analysis, AT&T seeks emergency relief because Verizon's side-by-side, apples-to-apples comparison of its own 3G coverage with AT&T's confirms what the marketplace has been saying for months: AT&T failed to invest adequately in the necessary infrastructure to expand its 3G coverage to support its growth in smartphone business and the usefulness of its service to smartphone users has suffered accordingly. AT&T may not like the message that the ads send, but this Court should reject its efforts to silence the messenger."
In light of Verizon's advertising assault, AT&T recently issued a response directly to its customers, calling the ads "so blatantly false and misleading, that we want to set the record straight about AT&T's wireless data coverage." AT&T then went on to highlight the speed of its network and the total coverage of its EDGE and 3G networks.
This response followed its federal complaint against Verizon's series of five ads which compared both network's 3G national coverage areas. The first two, dubbed "College" and "Bench," used the phrase "There's a map for that" in parody of the famous "There's an app for that" iPhone commercials. Verizon then followed up with three holiday-themed ads, with one describing the iPhone as a "misfit" due to AT&T's poor 3G coverage.
Verizon has recently turned up the heat on AT&T in the hardware arena as well, releasing several ads directly criticizing the iPhone and highlighting the differences between it and the Droid. The Droid is currently Verizon's flagship phone and is the first phone to have the Android 2.0 platform along with Google Maps Navigation, a GPS-like application which gives turn-by-turn directions directly over the data connection.
AppleInsider recently reported that scores associated with the Verizon Wireless brand have soared, while AT&T's have dropped since the Droid and 3G-coverage ads started to run Oct. 18th.
The latest filing on behalf of Verizon Wireless was in response to the latest request by AT&T to pull a series of ads from the air which highlight the disparity between the two companies' 3G data networks. The legal response holds no punches and is aggressive from the introduction: "AT&T did not file this lawsuit because Verizon's "There's A Map For That" advertisements are untrue; AT&T sued because Verizon's ads are true and the truth hurts."
Verizon's filing was issued in response to AT&T, which asserted that Verizon's ads are "false and misleading" because they confuse customers into believing that AT&T has no coverage in the areas highlighted as being devoid of 3G coverage.
Verizon's conclusion filed Monday in an Atlanta court maintains the tone set out from the start: "In the final analysis, AT&T seeks emergency relief because Verizon's side-by-side, apples-to-apples comparison of its own 3G coverage with AT&T's confirms what the marketplace has been saying for months: AT&T failed to invest adequately in the necessary infrastructure to expand its 3G coverage to support its growth in smartphone business and the usefulness of its service to smartphone users has suffered accordingly. AT&T may not like the message that the ads send, but this Court should reject its efforts to silence the messenger."
In light of Verizon's advertising assault, AT&T recently issued a response directly to its customers, calling the ads "so blatantly false and misleading, that we want to set the record straight about AT&T's wireless data coverage." AT&T then went on to highlight the speed of its network and the total coverage of its EDGE and 3G networks.
This response followed its federal complaint against Verizon's series of five ads which compared both network's 3G national coverage areas. The first two, dubbed "College" and "Bench," used the phrase "There's a map for that" in parody of the famous "There's an app for that" iPhone commercials. Verizon then followed up with three holiday-themed ads, with one describing the iPhone as a "misfit" due to AT&T's poor 3G coverage.
Verizon has recently turned up the heat on AT&T in the hardware arena as well, releasing several ads directly criticizing the iPhone and highlighting the differences between it and the Droid. The Droid is currently Verizon's flagship phone and is the first phone to have the Android 2.0 platform along with Google Maps Navigation, a GPS-like application which gives turn-by-turn directions directly over the data connection.
AppleInsider recently reported that scores associated with the Verizon Wireless brand have soared, while AT&T's have dropped since the Droid and 3G-coverage ads started to run Oct. 18th.
Comments
All I want for Christmas is a Verizon 64 Gig iPhone!
I love it when two whores bitch!
AT&T needs to stop whining, man up, and start producing ads that showcase the inherent benefits of HSPA over EVDO.
Or better yet start upgrading and expanding its network from edge so Verizon doesn't have a leg to stand on. The benefits of HSPA over EVDO don't matter if EVDO's the only one with a signal.
Still there must have been a reason for apple to go with ATT in the first place. How were the two networks comparing on the eve of iPhone launch? Did ATT always have a crappier network, and if not how long ago did Verison outdo ATT in 3G? Maybe the tables will turn again when iPhone 4G comes out.
AT&T needs to stop whining, man up, and start producing ads that showcase the inherent benefits of HSPA over EVDO.
Exactly. No one is stopping AT&T from starting their own ad campaign against Verizon. By the time this lawsuit is finalized Verizon would have started their next round of ad campaigns.
Or better yet start upgrading and expanding its network from edge so Verizon doesn't have a leg to stand on. The benefits of HSPA over EVDO don't matter if EVDO's the only one with a signal.
They apparently cover 75% of the populated US. Then there are the places that people don?t live but travel through. I have no idea how much area that is but I wouldn?t expect it to cover nearly as much area as Verizon?s network.
I?d rather see them get their 3G network converted to 850MHz and increase the throughput in the needed areas first before they focus on pushing their 3G coverage out to more remote areas. With a 5000% increase in data usage in 3 years I think it?s more important area to focus those billions in upgrading the high data areas first. From a per capita usage standpoint that seems to make more sense to me.
I’d rather see them get their 3G network converted to 850MHz and increase the throughput in the needed areas first before they focus on pushing their 3G coverage out to more remote areas. With a 5000% increase in data usage in 3 years I think it’s more important area to focus those billions in upgrading the high data areas first. From a per capita usage standpoint that seems to make more sense to me.
stick to the fact that you have the best wireless coverage and most amount of customers
in the United States.
And since they were targeting the iPhone, maybe they should've agreed to "take" the iPhone instead of AT&T holding that crown.
"the truth hurts"
note to Verizon: "KARMA hurts."
Verizon just needs to take a break and stop acting immature. Just
stick to the fact that you have the best wireless coverage and most amount of customers
in the United States.
I can’t agree with your sentiment that Verizon is acting immature. It’s a good campaign focus. One that directly speaks to consumers. AT&T has spent the last several years saying they had the fastest 3G network. AT&T has dug their own grave by first directly comparing the non-descript ‘3G’ doublespeak despite Verizon and AT&T’s 3G networks being inherently different.
Or better yet start upgrading and expanding its network from edge so Verizon doesn't have a leg to stand on. The benefits of HSPA over EVDO don't matter if EVDO's the only one with a signal.
Or, come out with Verizon customer testimonial ads and use the complaints from these former Verizon users and there are plenty of complaints...
http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/...ou-charge-now/
Kind of like a version of the Laptop Hunter ads except AT&T can call it "The Customer Satisfaction" ads... and if Verizon goes to court, AT&T can counter with, "Hey, the truth hurts!"
I can tell you if the iPhone was picked up by Verizon, I would switch immediately. The worst part of my iPhone is AT&T!
I also understand that Verizon was approached first by Apple, but refused due to the Visual Voicemail and Apple's general overbearing control they would need over their iPhone. Verizon, at the time, wasn't willing to concede to Apple's requests. Anyone else hear the same thing?
It is obvious that Verizon's commercials are not misleading. They do compare the products apples to apples (or Apples to Droids networks that is).
Still there must have been a reason for apple to go with ATT in the first place. How were the two networks comparing on the eve of iPhone launch? Did ATT always have a crappier network, and if not how long ago did Verison outdo ATT in 3G? Maybe the tables will turn again when iPhone 4G comes out.
Verizon's 'map for that' commercials ARE misleading but not false. They compare 3G coverage (not false) but do so in a way that gives the impression that all the other areas are not covered at all (misleading).
There was a good reason(s) Apple went with AT&T. Verizon rejected the opportunity to carry the iPhone originally. Other reasons include AT&T being willing to build back-end network support for iPhone features, and their willingness to let Apple maintain control of their device, unlike what VZ does to devices.
So here's an idea: Make an ad campaign that shows what YOU can do, not showing what your COMPETITORS do not. I find ads that speak out against others failures as immature, and that the company making the ad is hiding something bad about themselves by showing how "horrible" the other guy is. Everyone should be able to pull themselves up above the rest, not stand on other people's faces to get ahead.
Now mind you, I prefer Verizon's coverage over AT&Ts, and T-Mobile. I don't however like the "There's a charge for that" mentality that Verizon has. If you do it right, you can avoid the little tiny charges here and there.
Personally, I'd like to see Apple use their iPhone/iPod ad style for their computers. I'm so sick of the "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC" characters. Same goes for the M$ ads when it was the "Laptop Hunters". I hated those too. Show me what the Apple can do SANS Microsoft. So far, their computer ads can't do that... which is sadly ironic (even more sad to me is how well they've worked)
So, just show me how well your products work STAND ALONE, not in comparison, and maybe I'll be more inclined to buy!
(Note: All cell phone companies in the US in my market have ads that bash each other... you loose no matter who you choose.)