T-Mobile is on the hot seat right now over its advertising claims of having the “most reliable” 5G network. This claim, of course, comes from umlaut’s latest survey. But apparently, the National Advertising Division (NAD) has ruled that T-Mo cannot advertise based on this claim. T-Mobile plans to appeal the decision.
This issue first arose after AT&T challenged the claims that the Un-carrier made on TV and online ads. It caught the attention of the NAD, which then made a recommendation for T-Mo.
NAD noted that T-Mobile cannot rely on the results of the third-party testing’s audit since it makes use of crowdsourced data. “While NAD agrees that speed and coverage are important to consider when talking about 5G network reliability, speed and coverage alone cannot support a reliability claim.”
T-Mobile argued on this since the advertising board allowed wireless carriers to advertise recognitions made by legitimate third-party testing. The condition is that the basis for the accolade needs to be disclosed, which is what T-Mobile did. The NAD, however, argued that:
“While NAD has permitted wireless providers to advertise third-party awards for network performance as long as they are properly qualified, it does not do so without further inquiry. NAD carefully reviews the methodology for any third-party awards to ensure there is a reasonable basis for the underlying claim.”
The advertising board added that “a claim specifically directed at the reliability of a 5G network should be based solely on data obtained on 5G networks.”
T-Mobile has made their plans to appeal the decision clear. It will be making an appeal to the BBB National Programs’ National Advertising Review Board (NARB).
Source: Fierce Wireless