This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and check out other Battle of the Brands posts.
"I'm like Ma Bell, I got the ill communication." -- Beastie Boys
When considering these two particular companies, it is important to note their roots as offspring of the famous "Ma Bell" network. The Bell System, which has produced the most complex ongoing series of mergers and break-ups in the history of the United States, is the origin of the companies that are now AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ), as well as competitor Qwest Communications International (NYSE: Q). A lot has changed since those early times -- remember, after all, that the second "T" in AT&T stood for Telegraph. Now phones are the latest devices to be made supercomputers. AT&T has its exclusive deal with the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone, while Verizon slings the Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) BlackBerry.
Since wireless is the way of the future, the wireless divisions of these companies is the most hotly contested, and the focus of this "Battle of the Brands." It is important to note that despite Verizon Wireless bearing solely Verizon's name, it is not owned by just them, it is a 55%-45% joint venture between Verizon and Vodafone Group (NYSE: VOD). It is also important to note that AT&T Mobility is the service formerly known as Cingular, which was acquired by AT&T in 2006 when it bought BellSouth for $86B.
Looking first at Verizon Wireless, its strategy is simple. It focuses on the strength of its network as its main selling point. From the company's "Can you hear me now?" ads, to the current "It's the network" ads, the point the company conveys is that if you have Verizon, you are covered by the biggest and most reliable network. AT&T's most memorable recent ads may be Martin Scorsese "We won't interrupt your phone calls, please don't interrupt our movies" ads that play at the cinema, but the company also runs television ads that focus on "more bars in more places," which echoes a very similar message to Verizon's about the strength of their network.
There are arguments that can be made that either network is superior, depending on your metrics -- coverage area, dropped calls, strength of signal -- but what matters with branding is perception, and the edge in network perception goes to Verizon Wireless, which has spent years building its image as the superior cellular service.
However, network is not the entire argument. There is also the important matter of the hardware available on each service, where AT&T took a significant lead when it signed an exclusive contract with Apple to carry its iPhone exclusively. The reason for its significance is not only that users chose AT&T over Verizon for the highly desirable device, and not just because some Verizon users switched to AT&T to get one, it is also the type of customers it got. It got the tech-savvy, 18-24 users that use more minutes, text frequently, and use data plans. These users are good for far more revenue than the older users with minimal plans that just need a good network to use their cell phone in case of an emergency.
Both companies have high-quality networks, advertise extensively, offer a ton of different cell phones, and have similar pricing models, so, like most of these "brand battles," the decision comes down to personal preference. One thing is for sure, with over 65 million users for Verizon Wireless and over 71 million users for AT&T Mobility, this is one rivalry that will not be over anytime soon.
Vote in our poll for Verizon Wireless or AT&T Mobility as your preferred brand, and let us know in the comments why you love it.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-03-2008 @ 5:29PM
tom said...
Vz by a mile.....RELIABILITY!!!!
5-13-2008 @ 11:04AM
Tom Heim said...
Horrible article. How about telling us the benefits of each service, like RIMM vs 3G? Which service is better globally, or which service is better with smart phones.
How about costs (easy to research), customer service, ease in switching phones. Come on - what a wimpy conclusion to the article.
Tom
6-06-2008 @ 10:34AM
Kevin said...
AT&T is the best by a mile and I will be willing to argue it down. AT&T has 3G while Verizon has a high speed EVDO, but it cannot reach the speeds that AT&T can. AT&T is also global while Verizon is old old CDMA tech which out side of the USA and Cuba and your out of luck for service. Any way we cant go to Cuba you are out of luck for service. AT&T not a problem on the GSM network service anywhere and most of there phones support all GSM Bands. AT&T also has alot more phones to choose from not Verizon all you get is LG's mostly you get all brands but not good quality phones. Also all the brands are flashed with that Verizon menu interface which is awful. AT&T & (and to cover my self on making a good arrangement) T-Mobile you can swap the sim card to a unlocked GSM phone any time. Verizon is just doing this but its a pain in the but with there contract and argeements. It also has a lack of SIM Card In all Verizon is Just OLD Tech while AT&T is cutting edge GSM which is world wide and ever growing.
7-22-2008 @ 7:48PM
Ryan said...
I'm going to have to disagree w/ Kevin. First of all, if I didn't have Verizon I wouldn't be able to make/receive calls at my apartment. The building has brick walls and AT&T's GSM network cannot penetrate (some of my friends I've had over who have AT&T and T-Mobile). Second, Verizon's network was recently upgraded to EVDO Revision A, which is faster than AT&T's HSDPA (check out live tests on YouTube); a side note on this, LTE is what both Verizon and AT&T will have in the future. Verizon's release date for LTE is 2010, and that's what they've been planning to do ever since (probably even before) the 700Mhz auction ended; AT&T's original release date for their LTE network was 2012, but now they're saying it will be ready by 2010 as well. To address the world-wide reception debate, Verizon does have some phones with both CDMA and GSM radios that will work just as well or better than AT&T's overseas. Ultimately, Verizon has better coverage, about equal or a little faster 3G, and that's how it's going to be until we find out what happens in 2010. Oh, and if you were wondering how Verizon gets good coverage overseas, it's because of Vodafone, which operates on GSM.