Verizon Told to Rein in Misleading Satellite Messaging Ads

Following a complaint from T-Mobile, an advertising board says Verizon isn’t doing enough to disclose the limitations of its satellite messaging services.

The National Advertising Division recommends that Verizon discontinue or modify claims about the carrier’s satellite-powered text messaging.

The company has produced three commercials about how users can “text anywhere via satellite,” including in the most remote locations, and they showed Verizon users sending text messages from the sea and hills, with no traditional cell towers in sight. Thanks to orbiting satellites, customers can still communicate with their loved ones via text, the clips suggest.

However, T-Mobile argued the ads falsely implied the satellite messaging feature is available to all customers, regardless of their smartphone model. That’s because the satellite capability is currently only available for the iPhone 14 and higher models, thanks to Apple’s investments in satellite messaging. This includes bringing satellite connectivity to iMessage with iOS 18.

In August, Verizon also announced a partnership with a company called Skylo to bring emergency satellite messaging to its phones, including Android devices. It’s supposed to arrive this fall and complement Apple’s satellite services, but it does not appear to have launched yet.

In its defense, Verizon told the advertising board it placed a disclosure on the commercials that read: “Satellite connectivity requires select smartphones. Must be outside w/line of sight to satellite; might not work in parts of Alaska.”

But in the end, the National Advertising Division sided with T-Mobile, and essentially ruled that the disclosure is too small to easily read. “NAD determined that the disclosure in Verizon’s commercials is not clear and conspicuous and is unlikely to be read and understood by consumers,” the regulator said. 

The advertising board also flagged the carrier’s website for the same issue. “Verizon’s website provides some details about the material conditions of this text by satellite service, however, NAD concluded the disclosures on the website are not clear and conspicuous,” it said. 

Verizon didn’t respond to a request for comment. Nor did it supply an update on its partnership with Skylo. But the carrier told the advertising board it plans to comply with the decision. 

The advertising dispute coincides with a larger competition between T-Mobile and Verizon over satellite services. T-Mobile is preparing to use SpaceX’s cellular Starlink technology to provide satellite connectivity to customers. Meanwhile, Verizon is betting on Skylo and another satellite provider called AST SpaceMobile.

Earlier this year, T-Mobile also flagged an AT&T commercial featuring actor Ben Stiller that promoted the company’s upcoming satellite services, also with AST SpaceMobile. The problem is that the AT&T commercial implied the satellite services were already available when they could take months or longer to officially go live. In August, the National Advertising Review Board panel urged AT&T to modify the ad, which it did.