The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has criticised Vodafone for making a series of unfounded claims in a recent TV advertisement. The network operator professed to own the fastest and most reliable mobile broadband service in the galaxy but, following a number of complaints from members of the public and rival companies, the ASA found Vodafone’s assertions to be untrue, and therefore inappropriate for consumer consumption.
Vodafone commissioned the independent wireless engineering company, LLC International, to produce a report testing the comparative speed of some of the most popular wireless networks in the UK. Whilst the study did demonstrate that Vodafone was the fastest wireless broadband provider for small businesses and other corporate entities, the ASA was quick to point out that there was no evidence to suggest that Vodafone’s domestic service was any better than that provided by Hutchinson 3G or T-Mobile.
The ASA has accepted that the company was not trying intentionally to mislead their customers but maintains that the research undertaken was not comprehensive enough to warrant such grandiose claims. The offending advertisement was pulled from broadcast but Vodafone continues to display the same advert, albeit as an image, on their website.
Vodafone saw its share price fall to 112.9p last week amid growing concerns about the state of global markets. The provider is battling with BSkyB to purchase the British division of rival broadband company, Tiscali, but bosses are concerned that a recent profit slump could cripple its campaign. British Telecom and Nordic telecommunications giant, Telenor, also issued a profit warning.
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