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Mobile carriers make nice on coverage maps
If you've been in the US over the last couple of months, you have no doubt seen Verizon's 3G map advertisements. The ads compare Verizon's nationwide 3G network to AT&T much smaller coverage area and in the process take a not-so-subtle swipe at the iPhone.
AT&T soon filed a lawsuit against Verizon, claiming that the ads were false and misleading. Verizon countered by asking AT&T to prove that the ads were false.
Apparently the ads were true, because AT&T has agreed to drop the case. Verizon has in turn dropped its counter-charges and both companies can now get back to lobbing snarky commercials at one another.
AT&T had a good counter, but they missed it. When you look at their coverage map (both of the coasts and major cities) you see that it matches up nicely with population dispersal in the the US. Had they simply pointed out that their network covers 80-90 percent of where Americans live and work, Verizon's ads would have lost their teeth for the most part. Instead they decided to use the threat of a courtroom, and Verizon called the bluff.
After all the activation issues, slow feature rollout, and other headaches AT&T has caused for the iPhone, one has to wonder if the execs at Apple aren't counting down the days until the exclusive deal ends.
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