It’s always entertaining to see two big rival corporations going at it, publicly. Recently, Verizon wireless released an ad that was allegedly misleading, and damaging to the image of the company. In a move that you don’t see very often, AT&T addressed the ad and shot down the credibility of their rival with facts, instead of the “smoke and mirrors” Verizon had to offer.
Essentially what’s being displayed on the map is the lack of 3G coverage by AT&T. This doesn’t mean that they don’t get data coverage; the EDGE network is available to 97% of the population (according to AT&T). What sucks though, is that someone who want to buy an iPhone, who lives in an area that isn’t ‘blue’, is pretty much out of luck. At the moment, AT&T has the exclusive to the iPhone and Verizon doesn’t carry it, so even if they have super awesome 3G coverage, it’s meaningless without (in my opinion) the device that paved the way for the technology to be fully utilized.
The following was posting on AT&T’s website in response to the ad you just watched:
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, 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
