No Vodacom, you cannot have it both ways
In a recent press statement Vodacom said that “LTE, also known as 4G, is a faster mobile connection technology”. This statement may not draw much attention at first, but it deserves to be examined.
In 2010 Vodacom and MTN attacked Cell C for describing its 21Mbps HSPA+ network as 4G, and lodged separate complaints with the Advertising Standards Authority of South Africa (ASA) against Cell C’s 4G claim.
At the time, Cell C marketed its mobile broadband network and services as “4Gs”, which the company explained stood for “4 Great Service” and “4 Great Speed”.
Vodacom and MTN argued that Cell C was misleading consumers with their claims of having built a 4G network.
Vodacom’s argument against using 4G for HSPA+, LTE
Vodacom used the International Telecommunication Union’s (ITU’s) definition of 4G to substantiate its argument that Cell C was misleading consumers about having a 4G network.
According to the ITU, only IMT Advanced (LTE Advanced and 802.16m WiMax) qualifies as true 4G.
Cell C argued that many operators and other companies describe their HSPA+ and LTE networks as 4G. It added that using the term 4G would help consumers to understand that it is offering much faster and better broadband services.
Even the ITU said that while IMT-Advanced is considered as 4G, it recognized that this term may also be applied to the forerunners of these technologies, like LTE, WiMax, and HSPA+.
Vodacom dismissed this justification, saying that Cell C must abide by the ITU’s definition of 4G, which excludes HSPA+ and LTE.
Vodacom now doing the same as Cell C
Fast forward four years, and Vodacom is finding itself doing exactly the same as what Cell C did in 2010.
Vodacom’s press statement saying that “LTE, also known as 4G, is a faster mobile connection technology. With LTE/4G, video and music downloads can be accomplished in a fraction of the time of traditional 3G services.”
When confronted with this issue, Vodacom explained that “the challenge from the PR perspective is that the term 4G is being used interchangeably with LTE, with some manufacturers actually branding their devices as 4G instead of LTE”.
“This has created confusion amongst those not versed in the various technical definitions – which is the vast majority of people outside the tech industry – so the wording was purely intended to put things into context,” said Vodacom.
This is exactly what Cell C said in 2010, and Vodacom was adamant that this argument did not hold water.
In fact, through its ASA complaint Vodacom forced Cell C to change its 4Gs marketing campaign, costing Cell C millions of rands.
We’ve been having it, both ways
So, when Cell C tried to promote its network as 4G and it clashed with the ITU definition, Vodacom said it was misleading consumers.
When Vodacom did the same with its LTE network, it is merely to help people to understand what they are really getting.
To be fair, Cell C based a full marketing campaign on its 4Gs claims while Vodacom only mentioned it in a press release.
However, after its vicious attacks on Cell C for using 4G outside of the technical definition, Vodacom should really take care not to do the same.
And now for the bigger question: if LTE is known as 4G, what will Vodacom call LTE Advanced? Maybe “4Gs”, standing for “4G super”?
More on 4G battle
Cell C faces off with Vodacom, MTN over 4G network claims
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