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T-Mobile will ease marketing claims of “superior” 5G network

Wireless phone company T-Mobile has agreed to stop marketing its 5G network as “more reliable” than its competitors following a suggestion from the National Advertising Review Board and a complaint from rival Verizon.

The complaint stemmed from an online video featuring William Nye, better known as “Bill Nye the Science Guy,” in which he touted that T-Mobile’s decision to use mid-band spectrum made its 5G network more reliable than Verizon’s decision to use milli-meter wave spectrum.

“Other carriers have 5G signals that drop if you move two feet,” Nye said in the video, which was produced by T-Mobile.

Nye demonstrated Verizon’s supposedly inferior 5G service to T-Mobile’s by using mannequins. Verizon complained to the National Advertising Review Board (NARB), which is part of the not-for-profit Better Business Bureau.

The NARB said T-Mobile shouldn’t imply that Verizon’s 5G service “is so limited in any area as to cover only the space taken up by a single bench,” according to a decision handed down earlier this week. But the board said T-Mobile could continue to make claims that its network coverage is better than Verizon’s in future ads.

On Monday, a T-Mobile spokesperson said the company would abide by the board’s decision and affirmed its appreciation “that the panel agreed that T-Mobile can continue to advertise its superior 5G coverage without qualification.”

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About the Author:

Matthew Keys

Matthew Keys is a nationally recognized, award-winning journalist with over a decade of experience reporting on the business of media, broadcast television, streaming video platforms and emerging technology. He is the founder, publisher, and editor of TheDesk.net, a trusted source for in-depth news and analysis on the evolving media landscape.

Matthew’s reporting has appeared in major industry outlets, including StreamTV Insider, Digital Content Next and KnowTechie, where he covers topics at the intersection of journalism, streaming services, and digital media innovation. Throughout his career, he has held editorial roles at respected organizations such as Thomson Reuters, Tribune Media, the Disney-ABC Television Group and McNaughton Newspapers.

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