War Between AT&T and Verizon Escalates

Late on Monday (Nov. 16) Verizon filed a motion in the Northern District Court of Georgia aimed at countering AT&T’s recent lawsuit over Verizon’s series of competitive “There’s a map for that” ads.

In the legal document, Verizon contends that AT&T is unhappy with Verizon’s ads because they are accurate. “AT&T did not file this lawsuit because Verizon’s ‘There’s a map for that’ advertisements are untrue,” reads the document. “AT&T sued because Verizon’s ads are true and the truth hurts.”

Later, Verizon cites AT&T’s own lawsuit, in which Verizon claims that AT&T admits the Verizon ads are accurate. AT&T’s claims that Verizon’s ads are misleading “make no sense,” per Verizon.

Verizon wants the court to deny AT&T’s request that the carrier pull its ads. “This court should see AT&T’s [temporary restraining] effort to gain ’emergency relief’ for what it is: An attempt on short notice and without opportunity for discovery or deliberation to stop Verizon’s accurate comparative advertising campaign to gain a tactical advantage during the critical holiday shopping season,” Verizon contends.

— Nielsen Business Media