As an alternative, AT&T has launched a formal lawsuit in federal court in Texas against T-Mobile, asking for compensatory damages for “outright dishonest and entirely fraudulent” representations “specifically meant to defraud senior folks.” Although the reality seems to be somewhere in the centre, those are some very nasty statements. The website bannedseniors.com, which T-Mo launched just last week to showcase its competitors’ disrespect for the nation’s senior residents outside of Florida, is what sparked AT&T’s essentially unparalleled rage.
You might as well give up if you can’t defeat them. sue them. Although it doesn’t quite have the same ring as the proverb, this appears to be AT&T’s most recent tactic in its struggle with T-Mobile for control of the US cellphone market. The normally reticent carrier has been unusually eager to respond to a recent advertising campaign launched by its “untruthful” competitor, and the response went beyond verbal criticism or unfavourable descriptions of Magenta’s outlandish marketing antics.
Highlights
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Of course, that’s not quite the same thing as offering price cuts for all customers aged 50 (or 55) and up, so it remains to be seen how AT&T’s demands will play out in a court of law. Naturally, the third-largest wireless service provider stateside wants T-Mobile’s newest ad campaign to go away while also asking for its attorneys fees related to this case to be covered by its arch-rival.
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Magenta claims Verizon and AT&T currently offer no senior discounts whatsoever for residents of a grand total of 49 states, but while the former carrier has no grounds to challenge that accusation, the latter can hook up AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) members nationwide with cool monthly savings on “qualified AT&T wireless plans” (specifically, the Unlimited Premium option).
It’s certainly worth pointing out that T-Mobile has found itself in legal trouble several times of late, being sued for security breaches, its treatment of former Sprint subscribers, and even by Verizon and AT&T customers for the two’s recent waves of price hikes.
Last but not necessarily least, AT&T is demanding any profits generated by T-Mo’s senior-centric publicity stunt be given up, which may well amount to a good chunk of change if the campaign is not discontinued soon (which it probably won’t be) and if this lawsuit ends up needing months and months for a verdict to be reached (which is very likely to happen).