Verizon vs. AT&T: Maps
Verizon fired a shot across the bow of AT&T’s wireless business by launching a campaign calling out AT&T’s spotty 3G service:
jtherkal: Without the iPhone, Verizon was at a bit of a disadvantage in the smartphone market. People love iPhones. Unfortunately, perhaps feeling a little too comfortable with their exclusive contract with Apple, AT&T didn’t put forth the same effort as Verizon did to ensure good service for their customers. Verizon points this out and it’s effective, because it’s true. AT&T didn’t help the situation when they filed a lawsuit against Verizon trying to get the campaign yanked. They lost the case, because the claim is true, which made Verizon’s campaign even more effective. It’s not a trick, the law said so. I’m still an AT&T customer because I love the iPhone. But once that exclusive deal runs out, well, why not switch to Verizon? A.
Feeling the need to respond to the attack, AT&T launched a series of commercials starring Luke Wilson:
jtherkal: What’s wrong Luke Wilson, not enough romantic comedies to pay the bills? Or maybe you’re buying up dinosaur skulls? This is a weak attempt at answering Verizon’s attack. I’m sure that a fast 3G network is great when you’re in the 20% of the country where it exists. The rest of the time, good luck. The other claims they make are based on the fact that AT&T has the iPhone. So you’re service claims are based on another company’s ingenuity. The fact is, AT&T couldn’t really retaliate, because the map claim is true. In the spot where Luke is standing on the map naming all of the places that have service, he names major cities. Oh, you have service in Seattle? And Chicago!? I certainly hope so.
They would have been better off not aggressively going after Verizon, instead focusing on the positive things AT&T has to offer. The more they attack Verizon, the more people pay attention to Verizon’s claim. Like someone’s mom said, just ignore it and it might go away. D-.