Some news announcements in this industry have become very low on facts and high on bombastic marketing language.
The launch of competing networks throughout the country has led to a marketing war. With technology decisions behind them and buildout underway, wireless carriers are focused on their marketing campaigns.
In effect, these new marketing campaigns have become a subject of news. This is dangerous for anyone trying to ascertain actual movements in this industry because many company statements made now-with so much at stake financially-go beyond the usual tradition of mixing biased statements with facts.
Observers now have to determine what a statement really means, as opposed to just what is being said.
The obvious example is AT&T Wireless Services Inc.’s launch of “Digital PCS.”
RCR: “Is this a launch of your 1900 MHz markets?”
AT&T: “No.”
RCR: “Then are you referring to your cellular markets as PCS?”
AT&T: “We call it all PCS.”
Where’s the truth in this? I won’t apologize for continuing to ask that tired, age-old question because it continues to be the primary job of a reporter.
During the CDMA-GSM fight, reporters had to listen closely to the radio terminology being tossed around. Proponents often implied that such and such portion of the other guy’s technology didn’t operate as well. And, standing in the middle, you didn’t know whether it was true or not. But the arguments were clear.
Proponents of Code Division Multiple Access technology said, “That green portion of GSM is really going to cause them trouble. Wait and see!” And defenders of Global System for Mobile communications technology would respond, “Boy, will the CDMA people curse the day they decided to go with the red part of that standard!”
But never did any group in these critical battles stand and say, “We call all colors red.”
Current marketing discussions also are more slippery than real debates because promoters for the most part are purposely not comparing their service to that of their competitors. It’s an important difference. In fact, comparisons are discouraged and often dismissed with a “That’s an apples-to-oranges situation.”
Bottom line: Comparisons are an important way to illustrate value and dissimilarities. And saying something doesn’t make it so.
“Read my lips. No new taxes.”
