For some reason, Luke Wilson is taking AT&T's side in the 3G coverage wars, appearing in a new ad (see video below) that retaliates against Verizon Wireless' stinging assault.
The ad arrived just as a U.S. District Court judged ruled that Verizon can keep airing its attacks on AT&T. Unable to silence its biggest competitor, AT&T has no choice but to retort. Unfortunately, the carrier ends up looking like the one kid on the playground who can't come up with a good "yo' mama" joke.
First of all, why is Luke Wilson the spokesperson here? Does he have some deep understanding of mobile broadband that I'm not aware of? Of course not, but in his 30 seconds of air time, all Wilson can manage are AT&T's tired old PR bullets, plus one really weak insult. Let's go over those points, shall we?
Nation's Fastest 3G Network
Fine, but that won't help you in areas where there's no 3G coverage, which is what Verizon's been saying all along. How about quantifying this claim instead of just repeating it? I'd like to know what uses or in what situations AT&T's extra speed will afford me, to the point that it's preferable to more reliable overall 3G service. Make the case to people who live in big cities.
Talk and Surf at the Same Time
This feature is not useful enough to deserve the second bullet point on Wilson's list. Maybe it's just me, but usually I hold the phone to my ear when I talk. When I'm on speakerphone, it's usually because I'm driving or I just don't feel like holding the phone. Besides, browsing the Web during a conversation is kind of rude. Besides, who says "surf" in relation to Web browsing anymore?
Most Popular Smartphones
This needs to be singular, or explained better. If we're talking about the most popular smartphones exclusive to AT&T, that leaves the iPhone. Blackberry phones are the most popular in the United States, but Verizon carries them, too. And it's got a relevant AT&T-bashing ad.
Access to More Than 100,000 Apps
This claim, of course, is entirely thanks to the iPhone, whose days on AT&T might be numbered. Repeating "We've got the iPhone" ad nauseam until it's gone is not an effective marketing strategy.
Concession
At the end of the ad, Wilson concedes one point to the competition: Their name "starts with the letter 'V.'" Wow, good one, AT&T. Verizon, Berizon, the big fat Ferizon. Next time, just pay Luke Wilson to call Verizon Wireless a poo-poo head and call it a day.
Video: AT&T, Side by Side
Reprinted with permission from PC World. Story copyright 2009 PC World Inc. All rights reserved.
Comments
In response to Richard Dugan's comment of "So if you really are interested in providing the best value in service for your company, you will always select AT&T over Verizon" I feel that you're wrong.
Regardless of if ATT has a (singular) better phone (for the time being) what good is said phone with no service? Bring your "better phone" to what appears to be any where other than the coasts and you'll have little to no service...
Know what happens when one of my relatives brings their iPhone up to where I live to show it off? I get to see it in "paper weight mode" compared to any of my current or previous cell phones (and soon to be android) that work almost any where.
ATT *might* have more bars in more places but the extra bars are in places that obviously don't matter ;)
"I would fire anyone who did not for wasting corporate funds." I would fire you for: wasting funds, wasting resources, and most importantly, wasting time.
Additionally I'm not a fanboy; I go on the specs and facts. The iPhone *might* be a better phone for some; for others the Droid might be better; It all depends on the user's individual needs as I've yet to hear about anything spectacular that the iPhone can do that I'd care about...
If a user wants their phone to look pretty and simple then hands down the iPhone ... If the user wants to be able to use their phone (pretty much) anywhere then the Droid hands down. Disagree? Bring your iPhone to northern california; Bring it to Paradise, CA or north of there and let me know how well your iphone is working out for you.
Network wise I've used verizon all along and have friends that use various other carriers; Based on both the statistics available (http://news.cnet.com/8301-30686_3-10401094-266.html) coupled with personal experience I would have to say Verizon has more coverage then any other carrier.
Bottom line FACTS: Verizon has more coverage (within the USA) than ATT. The Droid may or may not be better than the iPhone (depending on the user's needs). Even if the Droid isn't considered better than the iPhone there will be other android phones out and sooner or later one will "kill" the iPhone.
Actually, the ability to surf the web while talking on the phone is very useful and I use it all the time. For instance talking to someone and they ask me for an address. Now that I am used to having this feature, it would be very hard to give up. I am suprised Verison doesn't off this and it really is a great benefit offered by AT&T.
I recently switched from Verizon to AT&T for the following reasons:
1. Too many dropped calls on Verizon
2. Verizon has forgotten to treat customers with politeness at their stores; the attitude of some techs stinks.
3. It's necessary to download new phone software nearly every month or two, as advised by their techs.
4. Charges for services that other companies give away--for example, moving a phone book from phone to phone.
5, Long lines and waits for service at Verizon's stores.
I found the above to be the case in two states.
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