Verizon Wireless and AT&T engage in legal fisticuffs over ad slogans
By Tim Stevens 
posted July 28th 2009 9:01AM
posted July 28th 2009 9:01AM
posted July 28th 2009 9:01AM
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Personally i like verizon better but they desperately need good phones =/
AT&T has the iPhone
T-Mobile has the (first) Android
Sprint as the Palm Pre (for six months, anyway)
Verizon has no big cellphones.
It's amazing that Verizon has the most customers of the big 4 *without* having any of the hyped-up cellphones. Imaging if they did have the iPhone, Pre and/or Android. They'd rule the country.
No wonder the CEO of Sprint gets so ruffled in his feathers every time someone mentions the Pre's inevitable port to Verizon.
Verizon only got the most customers by buying Alltel. They were #2 for quite a few years behind AT&T (who got to be #1 when they merged with Cingular)
AT & T vs Verizon? more like America's Most unreliable 3G Network VS America's Most Reliable 3G Network
Verizon has the most jacked up crippled phone OS, regardless of phone maker. Period.
Yeah but even before verizon bought alltel they had like 70million while att had like 76 million. And remember , at the time att had already merged with cingular. Then when verizon merged with alltel , they were at 80+.
(numbers are probably wrong, but close enough )
@Elranzer:
You mean RIM's first touch screen Blackberry wasn't a big deal?
Cingular bought AT&T Cellular, no merger. The reason they became AT&T again was because Cingular was a joint venture between Bellsouth and SBC. When SBC bought AT&T whole hog, they began using AT&T's brand. Then when the new AT&T bought Bellsouth thats when Cingular became AT&T.
Hey AT & T,
While you are raising the bar, I'm raising my middle finger at you!!!
Hey Verizon,
"The most reliable 3G network, looks more like the reliable "my ass". Can you hear me now ???
yeah, verizon's phones are terrible
"VZW took the A train down to US District Court in Manhattan" -- could you please quit it with the NYC references? Yes, we know you live in New York. Yes, we know it's one of the top hell-holes in the country. You have our sympathy. But it's not relevant to the story.
ok dude first, wtf?! seriously. thats a very common expression. second, even if you're not a new yorker you can do a little googling to find out that the 4, 5, and 6 subways are the ones you take to city hall. third, you need to be downranked. immediately.
ok dude, wtf? maybe that's a common expression in NY, but most of America is ???
Totally valid reference and used as a reference for any city.
Unless you live in a trailer.
Yeah, i am TOTTALY lost right now
You do know that verizon is located in nyc also right?
@majortom1981: "You do know that verizon is located in nyc also right?" No. Why would I care? They're a corporation; they exist in, er, moneyspace. Their physical location is irrelevant to me.
Hmmm, being that the court is located in Manhattan I find the NYC reference quite on point. If it was in Dallas perhaps they would have said DART train, if it was in San Fran perhaps they would have said trolley. Did a new yorker talk your gf out of her panties or something?
@Hey: "Yeah, i am TOTTALY lost right now" -- I'm not lost—I don't have to know where the A train goes to understand the statement. But I am annoyed at news outlets with a national or international audience that privilege the place where their offices are located. For example, NPR has a tendency to get all their expert opinions from people in the DC area.
LOL Amen to that!
@Izzy: "Totally valid reference and used as a reference for any city." -- No. Sensible cities label their train lines with place names (Chicago, Boston's commuter rail) or colors (DC, Boston's T). New York's non-system of arbitrary numbers and letters serves as an in-group signifier: if you've got to ask, you're an outsider.
Was this really worth getting so upset over?
Wouldn't it be better to take the D train and transfer to the 4 train?
>thats a very common expression.
I'm from NYC and I've never heard that term. It must be an old-time term. Whatever. I still got the point of the article so I didn't care that I didn't know that "common" expression.
In fairness, they're located in lower Manhattan, so more than likely walked across Chambers Street. It's a nice day, and either direction on the A from there wouldn't get them any closer to the District Court.
(If you want NYC based pedantry, just ask next time.)
@john stracke why is labeling a train system with letters and number more arbitrary than labeling it with colors. And if you must know, the trains are also labeled by colors and place they travel. The 'A' train is on the blue line and is also the "8th Ave Express."
Should the writers of this blog also refrain from making references to "The White House" because every country's leader doesn't live in a similarly named building?
@ John Stracke
Man, what a douche you are. Getting your panties in a bunch over this. Your inferiority complex over not being from one of the "top hell-holes in the country" has you wound so tight you are picking a bone on a tech blog (based in NYC mind you) simply because it is referencing a NYC company having to answer in NYC court via a NYC train. Oh No! the A train is arbitrary! *cry* Who the hell cares. Instead of picking a bone over something as inane as this, maybe you should just look in the mirror like Stuart Smiley, do some introspection and recite a few daily affirmations. The last thing we need is another redbeck from another hell-hole shooting up some more innocent people.
Or better yet.. just stop reading a NYC blog if you hate the place so much and don't want to hear about it. Common sense, no?
That's right, waste your money on a ridiculous lawsuit over claims that nobody actually listens to because anybody with common sense or at least brains knows they're usually bullshit.
Almost everyone just goes with the company with the best pricing/phones anyway, not reliability.
Muhammad.. maybe your out of touch with things.
Cheapest Plans - Boost Mobile - $50 unlimited minutes, texting, internet etc.
Next Cheapest - T-Mobile.
Least Cheapest - AT&T / Verizon.
Best Network - Verizon - they get customers because their network is superior.
Best Phone - AT&T - Iphone.
Without cheap plans, boost / tmobile wouldn't get customers.
Without a great network - Verizon wouldn't get the most customers.
Without the Iphone AT&T would be hemorrhaging customers.
Thus NETWORK does play a key role. Of course best phone / best network claims are all subjective based on your likes and where you live. Where we live (Phila suburbs) Verizon is definitely the best. In our office building you see all the AT&T customers going outside to check their voicemail and make calls.
Maybe consumers do, but not business. We spend an insane amount of money each month with Verizon because we have users that live, or work, in every state in the country and guess what.. Verizon has the most reliable network. Nobody comes close.
I agree with consumers.. they go for the phones, which is probably good that AT&T got the iPhone, because had Verizon taken it, there probably would not be much left of AT&T... =
"In our office building you see all the AT&T customers going outside to check their voicemail and make calls."
Funny that you say this. I work in a high rise in downtown Chicago and our firm uses AT&T and we can never get a solid signal here. If I want to use my cell phone I have to head outside too. Pathetic. Also, the AT&T data network is the most irritating and unreliable I have used. I loose the signal constantly when listening to online radio.
@duke
thats because ATT is wack ass GSM signal sucks inside buildings and data is even worst, thats why people that have att and tmobile always have to go outside to do a clear call without the garble or droping calls. GSM sucks at least here in the US
@periks
that's because AT&T uses the 1900 spectrum in your area, it allows faster data travel with a higher user support but does not offer decent building penetration. Don't blame AT&T blame the FCC for not allowing AT&T to boost it's towers to the same levels allowed in Canada and Mexico, if AT&T could increase the signal strength you would have better coverage.
We need a really cranky old judge to sentence them both to using the slogan "We think we suck less the the other guy, but we both lie through our teeth".
Personally.... If I didn't know better, I'd think a Domenatrix woman Runs Verizon!!
They should actually be fighting over the motto "America's most reliably overpriced network".
This is a great way to hide a collusion and to misdirect dollars that should be spent on upgrading and improving networks.
No issues with AT&T's service or reliability here. Much better than Verizon's NOTwork.
ha! if anything at&t crap is more of a joke!
"More Bars in More Places" "Raising The Bar" etc.....
come on....try keeping a call connected when you are on the highway or crossing a bridge in NYC!!! its a instant drop! that's why I switched to VZW and better coverage+3G network
I wish Verizon would buy AT&T.
Whoever wins, we lose. And lose, and lose, and lose.
Wow, AT&T must not know how fragile their glass house is.
They imply that they have a worldwide network in the voiceovers. It is only at the end in text at bottom do they explain that what they really mean is the most phones in the most places. And they still never say those places are covered by other companies.
Wow, AT&T must not know how fragile their glass house is.
They imply that they have a worldwide network in the voiceovers. It is only at the end in text at bottom do they explain that what they really mean is the most phones in the most places. And they still never say those places are covered by other companies.
I believe AT&T will be launching a new slogan: "We've got the iPhone, so suck on that!"
Ha ha imagine if people all of a sudden started buying the Pre and G1 like crazy after that! =D
Seriously, that's all AT&T's got in their defense.
Once the iPhone goes Verizon (which is INEVITABLE), then AT&T might as well call it quits. They've got the worst customer service, worst network, etc. No wonder they paid so much for iPhone exclusivity and allowed Apple to do anything. The iPhone is their defense to be lazy. They're banking on the Apple fanboys (like Kevin Rose) to just pony up for AT&T service, regardless of the actual service, just to use the iPhone. No actual effort on AT&T's part. They're so used to monopolistic practices, it's par for the course or AT&T.
I can't wait for this company to go under and its execs to be jobless and homeless.
at&t has a horrible network and verizon's network is fine but they are to expensive they charge you for everything so i thing verzon has the right
You are wrong. Most of verizon pricings matches at&t prices and only companies that are cheaper compared to at&t and vzw are tmobile and sprint.
Verizon = premium CDMA
AT&T = premium GSM
Sprint = discount CDMA (piggy-backed on Verizon's network)
T-Mobile = discount GSM (piggy-backed on AT&T's network)
Thing is, GSM in the USA is terrible. USA is more like Japan in that CDMA is more prevalent.
The thing about att is that it depends where you live. In the South-East i always have great internet speed and coverage just about everywhere. There are places verizon has coverage that att doesn't. There are places att has coverage that verizon doesn't. It truly depends where you live.