AT&T responds to Verizon ads

Seth Weintraub
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November 13, 2009
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Today, AT&T issued a response to Verizon's ads which have been getting a lot of attention lately.  The ads show maps of 3G service, which Verizon covers more geographic area of the US.  AT&T thinks that consumers believe that those maps are of overall geographic coverage - which AT&T actually has more of than Verizon.

 

AT&T is also suing Verizon over the claimed misrepresentation.  AT&T's claim (which they never dispute the maps - but somehow call them "blatantly false and misleading")  below:

AT&T Sets the Record Straight on Verizon Ads

To Our Customers:

As the U.S. market leader in wireless data service, we typically don't respond to competitors' advertising. However, some recent ads from Verizon are so blatantly false and misleading, that we want to set the record straight about AT&T's wireless data coverage.

The key facts are:


  • AT&T's wireless data coverage reaches 303 million people – or 97% of the U.S. population, where they live and work. Our data coverage consists of 3 different types of technology:
    • 3G. 233 million people or 75% of the population are covered by AT&T's 3G network, the nation's fastest.
    • EDGE. 301 million people or more than 96% of the population are covered by EDGE.
      • With both 3G and EDGE coverage, customers can access the Internet, send e-mail, surf the Web, stream music, download videos, send photos, text, talk and more. The only difference – with some data applications, 3G is faster than EDGE
    • GPRS. Covers 303 million people, allowing you to talk, text, e-mail and access basic websites optimized for wireless.

AT&T is the #1 network for smartphones, with twice the number of smartphone customers than Verizon, our closest competitor. Some of the reasons include:

Most popular smartphones. Unlike Verizon, AT&T offers the most popular smartphones in the industry.

More wireless apps. Unlike Verizon, AT&T customers have access to more than 100,000 applications [hmm - wonder where those 100,000 come from?], more than with any other wireless company.

Talk and E-mail at the same time. Unlike Verizon, AT&T's 3G network lets wireless customers simultaneously talk and surf the web or do e-mail.

Fastest 3G in the nation. Unlike Verizon, AT&T has the nation's fastest 3G network.

Thank you for allowing us to set the record straight. We appreciate your business and will continue to work hard to deliver the best wireless data experience in the industry.

Your AT&T Team

Comments (10)

9to5Mac Noob (not verified) | November 13, 2009 - 8:28am

ha, verizon really got under their skin with this one...  I notice ATT never refutes the 3G claim in their rebuttal.

9to5Mac Noob (not verified) | November 13, 2009 - 8:35am

The fact that Verizon is showcasing their map is quite suspect, since Verizon is unsure of Verizon's OWN map.  To quote the Verizon web site's coverage map page:

 

"The coverage areas shown do not guarantee service availability, and may include locations with limited or no coverage."


"Some of the coverage area includes networks run by other carriers; some of the coverage depicted is based on their information and public sources and we cannot ensure its accuracy."

 

Your only smart move when contracting for wireless services is to try before you buy.  Most providers let you escape from contract before 15 or 30 days without penalty.  Or use a friend's phone for a few weeks where you spend your time.  If you use the map to determine you're hapiness, you could easily be stuck without recourse.  And then you'll have to pay the $180  to bail out of the contract.

Warren (not verified) | November 13, 2009 - 8:58am

[hmm - wonder where those 100,000 come from?]

The count is low. They're ignoring the jailbroken stuff.

9to5Mac Noob (not verified) | November 13, 2009 - 9:03am

I've seen multiple reports in the past regarding network speeds.  I can only find one done by Wired.com now.  But it reads similar results, in the same ranking order as all the other ones I remember.  If I find more reports, I'll post an update again.  But AT&T may have the largest infrastructure for a 3G network to carry the weight of all the iPhones.  But AT&T is still the nation's slowest clocked 3G network out of the big 4 companies.  And not just barely the slowest.  These numbers are interesting to me, as Verizon had the lowest amount of participants, when AT&T had the most.  But still, the order is:

#1 (fastest): Verizon - 1,940 Kbps w/ 856 participants

#2): T-Mobile - 1,793 Kbps w/ 1189 participants

#3): Sprint - 1,598 Kbps w/ 1570 participants 

#4 (slowest): AT&T - 940 Kbps w/ 8,153 participants 

(Source: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/07/3g-speed-test/ - July 10th, 2009 - Brian X. Chen)

9to5Mac Noob (not verified) | November 14, 2009 - 12:30pm

I an not sure where wired was using its coverage, and on what devices, but engadget had it totaly the opposite.  Check out this battle between mobile broadband carriers.  Oh and as an owner of both an iPhone and Verizon Blackberry...AT&T rips the big V here in H-Town.  My iPhone 3Gs can pull two pages before the BB can finish loading one.

Here is the article below.

http://www.engadget.com/2009/05/26/engadget-labs-the-best-mobile-broadband-carrier-in-america/

DiSKo (not verified) | November 13, 2009 - 9:09am

"do email" does it really say that? They sound like my grandma

CaptPostMod (not verified) | November 13, 2009 - 10:13am

In Soviet Russia, email does you.

 

(I thought "do email" was the worst bit of marketing copy I've read in a while, as well.)

9to5Mac Noob (not verified) | November 14, 2009 - 5:44am

All this moaning about speed is lost on me, since I live only 30 miles from a "major city" and don't have coverage from ANY carrier of ANY kind.   Call me when those little tiny dots get connected with coverage.

mogey16816 (not verified) | November 15, 2009 - 3:57pm

There's no way that at&t has more coverage than verizon. We switched from at&t to verizon, and with the former we had to go to the end of our driveway to get any coverage whatsoever. Now, we can get at least 2 bars in our house. Also, when going on trips with friends, I have always noticed how many more bars I have than they do. We went to Boron (a little 1 road town in the middle of the desert in southern california) and I had 1 bar and could easily make a call.