• by Danielle Oster , 11 hours ago

 AT&T tapped actor Luke Wilson for a new campaign calling out competitor T-Mobile for what the brand says are “misleading claims.”

“It’s becoming clear that it’s no longer enough to be transparent with our own customers. We need to speak up when our competitors are misleading customers,” AT&T wrote in a media briefing on the new campaign. “T-Mobile has been misleading consumers for too long and it’s time to set the record straight.”

Arriving around a year after the launch of its “AT&T Guarantee,” the campaign positions that promise as in contrast with T-Mobile. Wilson stars in a pair of new ads called “Ain’t Our First Rodeo,” and “Check the Scoreboard.”

The former highlights AT&T’s brand legacy dating back to 1876, while calling T-Mobile “the master of breaking promises.” Wilson also picks up a newspaper with a headline reading, “T-Mobile Most Challenged For Deceptive Ads.” In 2024, both AT&T and T-Mobile were among the wireless carriers that reached settlements over deceptive advertising with attorneys general in states including New York and Texas.

In the latter spot, Wilson notes that AT&T was America’s first network and says it’s “still the best,” consulting a scoreboard checking off the network for “fastest’ and “reliable.”

Among T-Mobile’s misleading claim are the offering to “lock in prices,” and then raising rates, and implications around T-Mobile’s coverage being superior, according to AT&T. T-Mobile canceled its “lifetime price lock” with customers last year, and raised rates across a number of plans this spring.

T-Mobile’s marketing has also touted it has “more towers. While that may imply better coverage (a claim T-Mobile doesn’t appear to have ever made outright), AT&T claims its coverage actually reaches 300,000 miles more than T-Mobile.

AT&T told Marketing Daily that the campaign is supported by a major media buy across national networks.

In general, AT&T is investing more in targeted digital advertising than mass-market media.

“We can get a lot more out of digital marketing based on knowing where the customer is and what the right best offer is to put in front of them,” AT&T CEO John Stankey said during a call with investors discussing the company’s Q3 earnings report this week. “We've had pretty good success doing that.”

Back in January, the wireless brand introduced its new “AT&T Guarantee” network reliability and customer care pledge, with a campaign featuring former NFL stars Tim Tebow, DeMarcus Ware and Marshawn Lynch.

“We’re not just building a network — we’re building trust. With billions invested and a multiyear AT&T Fiber expansion, we’re delivering blazing-fast, rock-solid connectivity where people live, work, and move,” AT&T COO Jeff McElfresh said in a statement. “Coverage. Reliability. Accountability. These aren’t extras — they’re the essentials of modern life, and we’re making them non-negotiable.”