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As Expected, Verizon Launches New PR Assault
New logo, new slogan in effort to counter iPhone with Droid(s)
by Karl Bode Monday 28-Jun-2010 tags: business · Op/Ed · wireless
As some insiders leaked last week, Verizon today unveiled their new ad campaign from the ad agency (McGarryBowen) that's been powering their new Droid ads. With the ad campaign comes a new Verizon logo: "Verizon, Rule The Air!" Verizon's new rebranding comes with a new promise by Verizon that they'll stop hammering users with bizarre fees, work tirelessly on billing their users accurately, and make it their life's mission to bring consumers low wireless data prices in line with real-world costs.

Click for full size
Just kidding.

Nothing substantive (pricing, phone lineup, billing) is changing. It's simply a new ad campaign (though a very nice, CGI heavy one) utilizing a new ad agency and a lot of new slogans (like "the real communications giant is you"). Of course the real goal is to draw attention to the arrival of some fairly sexy new Android-based phones -- including the Droid X -- and try to deflate some of the hype surrounding the iPhone 4.

Rumors of an iPhone on Verizon's network appear to once again be fluff and nonsense -- Verizon seems dedicated to the Android platform, and unlike AT&T so far isn't crippling handsets. One issue they face is that supply constraints (of 3.7-inch AMOLED screens specifically) have resulted in users who ordered the HTC Droid Incredible facing delays in actually getting the device.

Verizon users now tell us that those who have Incredibles back-ordered are being told they can switch their order to the Motorola Droid X -- and likely get a Droid in their pocket sooner (July 15 for the X, vs. July 28 or later for many Incredible backorders).

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glinc

join:2009-04-07
New York, NY

Sad.....

Its sad that they got rid of the Can You Hear Me Now?? guy

N3OGH
Yo Soy Col. "Bat" Guano
Premium
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs
kudos:1

Re: Sad.....

He was downsized. Globie-antenna looking logos don't ask for more cash when their contract is up .
--
Petty people are disproportionally corrupted by petty power

BabyBear
Keep wise ...with Nite-Owl

join:2007-01-11

Re: Sad.....

said by N3OGH:

He was downsized. Globie-antenna looking logos don't ask for more cash when their contract is up .
Maybe his contract wasn't up, maybe they just paid his ETF!

N3OGH
Yo Soy Col. "Bat" Guano
Premium
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs
kudos:1

Re: Sad.....

Well, now that it's "pro rated" they can afford it!

rtcy
FACTS only please
Premium
join:1999-10-16
Norwalk, CA

Re: Sad.....

I wonder how they will rule the air. I just switched my phone to Metro and in this LA area , I have no problems with unlimited for 45.00 on a smart phone.

they can rule this from now on.

Maxo
Your tax dollars at work.
Premium,VIP
join:2002-11-04
Tallahassee, FL
said by glinc:

Its sad that they got rid of the Can You Hear Me Now?? guy
Just like it will be sad when Progressive drops the annoying sales girl.

Neoistheone

join:2007-01-13
Tornado, WV

Re: Sad.....

Hey now don't hate on Flo.

N3OGH
Yo Soy Col. "Bat" Guano
Premium
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs
kudos:1

Re: Sad.....

I can't stand that broad....

N3OGH
Yo Soy Col. "Bat" Guano
Premium
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs
kudos:1

Giant?

"the real communications giant is you"

Does that mean I can start charging my friends phantom 2 dollar fees for doing nothing?

Rule the air? Sounds a little weak to me. The logo is a little too old-e tyme looking.

I predict EPIC FAIL, but shit, I said the same thing about the iPad, so we all know how much I know about anything.....
--
Petty people are disproportionally corrupted by petty power

Z80A
Premium
join:2009-11-23
Reviews:
·Cox HSI

X-TREME!

What a waste of subscriber dollars. Rebranding does nothing but costs millions. It does nothing for investors and does nothing for subscribers. All it does is cost, everything from new commercial advertising, to signage, and printed materials.

No one is going to subscribe because they changed their name from Verizon Wireless to Verizon.
--
"Our goal (was to make) a billion phones Flash-enabled by 2010...We're actually going to get 1 billion Flash-enabled phones by 2009." -Adobe Chief Technology Officer Kevin Lynch in Nov 2008.
openbox9

join:2004-01-26
Alexandria, VA
kudos:2

Re: X-TREME!

We'll see what happens in the next couple of quarters. BTW, it's not really so much a re-branding effort as it is a marketing blitz. Note that Verizon Wireless is still Verizon Wireless...it even states so on the Verizon Wireless page
dforan

join:2000-12-09
Willoughby, OH

1 edit
We can always out source to some offshore non english speaking 5th world country and dump some more employees

Z80A
Premium
join:2009-11-23

Re: X-TREME!

Like they need an excuse to do that.

NOCMan
MacChatter
Premium
join:2004-09-30
Colorado Springs, CO
Wish more people knew that Verizon Wireless support reps are US Based.

Course maybe people enjoy talking to John from Bangalore when they call other companies.

Z80A
Premium
join:2009-11-23

Re: X-TREME!

Actually I was a fan of Humphrey Bogart from New Delhi
NeoandGeo

join:2003-05-10
Harrison, TN

1 edit

.

After the rebranding, can I just have a data plan and nothing else from you guys? Or will that hit the bottom line too much?
openbox9

join:2004-01-26
Alexandria, VA
kudos:2

Re: .

said by NeoandGeo:

After the rebranding, can I just have a data plan and nothing else from you guys?
$60/mth and you can have a data plan

Besides, when a "data only" plan is available for a smartphone, you don't really expect it to cost less than a voice + data plan do you?
NeoandGeo

join:2003-05-10
Harrison, TN

Re: .

I have been hoping for something close to $5 a GB. Wishful thinking I do believe, unfortunately.
openbox9

join:2004-01-26
Alexandria, VA
kudos:2

Re: .

Don't hold your breath for anything that undercuts current offerings. As you alluded to previously, the carriers aren't going to take a revenue hit. Something will give somewhere, but it's not the carriers' bottom lines.

R4M0N
Brazilian Soccer Ownz Joo

join:2000-10-04
Glen Allen, VA

Cruel Joke

Very cruel joke, Karl...

quote:
Verizon's new rebranding comes with a new promise by Verizon that they'll stop hammering users with bizarre fees, work tirelessly on billing their users accurately, and make it their life's mission to bring consumers low wireless data prices in line with real-world costs.
I almost peed my pants with glee just to get stabbed back to reality

quote:
Just kidding...
old_wiz_60

join:2005-06-03
Bedford, MA

Re: Cruel Joke

Verizon is far far more interested in making as much money as possible rather than such trivial things as billing accurately or giving good value for the money. After all, someone has to pay those huge executive bonuses.

jap
Premium
join:2003-08-10
038xx


Yeah, the "just kidding" fell right below the fold. Still. you took a dreamy sucker punch. After all, this is Karl we're talking about.


Frink
Professor
Premium
join:2000-07-13
Scotch Plains, NJ

Neutral Stance

While we will see what actually plays out in real-life, the "it's you" campaign appears to me to be more of an admission that the Network should be Neutral than anything I've seen yet.
kingfisher
Premium
join:2007-07-17
Webster, NY

Borrowed logo?

Does anyone think this might have inspired the new logo?

»upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e···-Rko.JPG
beaups

join:2003-08-11
Hilliard, OH

Re: Borrowed logo?

No.

DaveDude
No Fear

join:1999-09-01
New Jersey
kudos:1
yup. I thought that as well. It looks so recycled.
blacksurfer

join:2002-07-14
Sherman Oaks, CA

Droids will never catch iPhone

There are too many Androids (Droids) that's hard to figure out.
X, Incredible, HD, etc. etc. iPhone will rule the day for quite a while.

mxmumtuna

join:2000-08-11
Ashburn, VA

Re: Droids will never catch iPhone

Google said the other day that they're activating 160,000 Android phones per day. That's up from 100,000 in May, 60,000 in February, and 30,000 last year. That's good growth. At this pace (not to mention increased growth), Android could overtake iPhones in overall penetration by the end of the year.

Wouldn't that be something.

N3OGH
Yo Soy Col. "Bat" Guano
Premium
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs
kudos:1

Re: Droids will never catch iPhone

Ut oh, we're talking about Droid penetration now...
dynodb
Premium,VIP
join:2004-04-21
Minneapolis, MN
said by blacksurfer:

There are too many Androids (Droids) that's hard to figure out.
X, Incredible, HD, etc. etc. iPhone will rule the day for quite a while.
Anyone who can't figure it out should be kept from hot stoves and sharp objects.

The fact that there are multiple platforms using the same OS is a strength, not a weakness. If you want the iPhone OS, you're pretty much stuck with the iPhone and whatever Steve Jobs decides to let you have. If you want the Android OS, you get to pick and choose which phone best suits you.

Apple's near-monopoly on consumer-friendly smartphones is over, and that's a good thing.
Turbocpe
Premium
join:2001-12-22
IA

2 edits

Re: Droids will never catch iPhone

LOL at your comments, dynodb.

Having used both an iphone and Droid, I cannot see how the Droid is hard to figure out. I don't miss my iphone one bit, and certainly don't miss the spotty 3G AT&T coverage that it was tied to. Even with AT&T 3G coverage area, I wasn't certain I could make a call or browse the Internet anytime I wanted.

said by dynodb:

said by blacksurfer:

There are too many Androids (Droids) that's hard to figure out.
X, Incredible, HD, etc. etc. iPhone will rule the day for quite a while.
Anyone who can't figure it out should be kept from hot stoves and sharp objects.

The fact that there are multiple platforms using the same OS is a strength, not a weakness. If you want the iPhone OS, you're pretty much stuck with the iPhone and whatever Steve Jobs decides to let you have. If you want the Android OS, you get to pick and choose which phone best suits you.

Apple's near-monopoly on consumer-friendly smartphones is over, and that's a good thing.

n2jtx

join:2001-01-13
Glen Head, NY
I can't get "Angry Birds" on anything but an iPhone/iPod Touch
--
I support the right to keep and arm bears.
Big Dawg 23

join:2002-03-27
Northfield, MN
Hard to say they will rule given the Android platform continues to grow. IF the reported 75% of iPhone 4 are re-ups and not new that means that have hit the cap.

Now I wish I could buy a phone and be told how to hold it so calls and data doesn't drop.

TexasPlus
Don't Blame Me I Voted For The American
Premium
join:2004-06-16
Bedford, TX
said by blacksurfer:

There are too many Androids (Droids) that's hard to figure out.
X, Incredible, HD, etc. etc. iPhone will rule the day for quite a while.
What good is an IPhone on a crippled network??
--
"The world is a book; those who do not travel read but a single page." -St. Augustine

newview
Ex .. Ex .. Exactly
Premium
join:2001-10-01
Parsonsburg, MD
kudos:1
Reviews:
·Vonage
·DIRECTV

Verizon . . . you are SO full of it . . .

quote:
Verizon's new rebranding comes with a new promise by Verizon that they'll stop hammering users with bizarre fees, work tirelessly on billing their users accurately, and make it their life's mission to bring consumers low wireless data prices in line with real-world costs.
quote:
Marine Widow Michaela Brummund Battles Verizon Over $350 Termination Fee
First Posted: 06-25-10 03:54 PM | Updated: 06-26-10 10:50 AM

Michaela Brummund's husband, a marine, was killed in Afghanistan by an IED.

Following his death, the young widow decided to move home to Copperopolis, a small California town with a population of just over 2,000, in order to be closer to her family and grieve.

Verizon, however, does not offer cell phone service in the town. Brummund called the phone company to cancel her service, and they hit her with a $350 early termination fee for ending her contract before expired--despite Brummund "being a widow and Verizon not living up to its contractual obligations to provide actual cellphone coverage," as the Consumerist notes.
»www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/06/2···981.html
Verizon's rebranding is just more corporate bullshit and media spin.

EGeezer
Summertime
Premium
join:2002-08-04
Midwest
kudos:7
Reviews:
·Callcentric

Logo Copyright infringement?


Copyright RKO Pictures LLC
That logo looks very much like the RKO Radio pictures logo.

obeythelaw
Premium
join:2003-04-16
Bayonne, NJ

I think the Verizon/Apple hookup is over

Any chance or thought of Verizon and Apple hooking up is over. Verizon is content to market their Android lineup. They are touting the Droid phones as the better alternative to the iPhone on a better network. Do you think Apple is going to be like, Hey Verizon, even though you crap on our device, we still want to do business. Ain't happening. Especially with Jobs at the helm. If you piss this guy off you're only asking for grief. Look at the whole Apple/Adobe confrontation.
I think this may also be one of the reasons AT&T is crippling their Android phones. If they didn't they would have a harder sell for their exlusive iPhone. I bet ATT just figures that if you want an Android phone on our network, think again and just get our exclusive iPhone.
nocannothave

join:2006-10-14
Kennewick, WA
Reviews:
·Charter

Previous performance...

I'm hoping someone can help me out.

I am (sort of) in the market for a new phone, and have one chosen if I were to upgrade. It's another "simple" phone that does not require a data package. LG Cosmos.

Does this re-branding possibly point to the change of some phones and their plan? Like, this simple phone now requires purchase of a data plan.

Basically, has something like this re-branding deal happened previously and were the phone plan requirements changed?

DNGNBILL

@sprintlink.net

How about a real good deal

Have you heard about 4G? Not on Sprint? Well, I can offer you a discount on 4G service where available! Check out the hottest device around, the HTC EVO 4G. Plus, you can try it free for 30 days. Go to www.sprint.com/everythingplus for details. If you’re ready to switch, let me know. bill.j2.moran at sprint dot com ID 942

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