Brian GarnerIn a 30 second advertisement which first aired Saturday during the ALCS baseball game, Verizon unveiled a new ad targeting the iPhone. The ad, which greatly resembles Apple's stylized spots, listed several of the iPhone's proposed weaknesses when compared to Verizon's new Droid smartphone with the tagline "iDon't."
No real details about the Droid phone were presented in the spot, instead viewers were directed to a Web site where e-mail addresses could be submitted for more information.
This is not the first ad that has specifically lampooned the iPhone. Verizon also released an ad which compares the 3G coverage of their service to that of AT&T's, using the tagline "there's a map for that." It parodies Apple's own iPhone advertisements, which have famously touted that "There's an app for that."
Verizon was one of the carriers that Apple originally looked to before the initial launch of the iPhone, but Verizon ultimately passed on an exclusive 5-year deal, citing a variety of issues from Apple royalties to customer care.
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166 Comments
Nice visuals, but pretty lame. Brings more attention to idont.com, which is squatted. Going to be an interesting turn in the industry soon... we'll have to see what shakes out.
iDon't get it.. :S
My very non-technical wife, who has an iPhone 3G, watched the "Droid" add. She quickly knew it was against the iPhone, had no clue what "Droid" is or means, and has no desire to figure it out. Most of the add talks about a competitor, and most consumers won't know, or care, what "droid" is.
Having said that, I hope any android phone on Verizon is at least somewhat successful so Apple will continue to be motivated to further innovate with the iPhone.
They make some good criticisms.
I find it funny that Apple is hurrah'd when they make fun of Microsoft or Dell, but then people poo-poo anyone who does the same to the almighty Apple. "You can dish it out but you can't take it" comes to mind.
Wonder if Verizon already knows that they are years away from being able to support the iPhone (when their 4G Network is up and running). Hence, the iPhone is now the 'enemy' for years to come.