AT&T has filed a federal lawsuit against Charter Communications over some of the company’s advertising claims about its residential broadband service.
The lawsuit, filed in Texas on Friday, claims Charter wrongly promotes its Spectrum Internet as powered by a fiber network, suggesting to consumers that it is comparable to AT&T’s own fiber-based offering, despite both companies using different technology.
AT&T says the vast majority of Spectrum Internet uses a hybrid fiber-coaxial network, where fiber reaches a neighborhood node but copper coaxial cable carries the final connection to the customer’s premises. By comparison, AT&T’s service, called AT&T Fiber, doesn’t use the older coaxial cable technology.
“At the center of that campaign is Charter’s claim that Spectrum Internet is ‘Fiber-Powered’ and delivered over the ‘Spectrum Fiber Broadband Network,’” AT&T said in the complaint. “That claim conveys to reasonable consumers the misleading impression that Spectrum Internet is a fiber-to-the-home service comparable to AT&T Fiber.”
AT&T argues the distinction matters because fiber-to-the-home service can offer better reliability, lower latency and stronger upload performance than hybrid fiber-coaxial networks, particularly during peak usage. The company said customers should not have to rely on fine print to understand the difference.
“We don’t think customers should have to be telecom experts or squint at the fine print to know what they’re buying,” an AT&T spokesperson told The Desk by e-mail. “You wouldn’t call a half-gallon a gallon or a half-truth the whole truth. And a disclaimer doesn’t turn copper into fiber.”
Charter has not publicly commented on the lawsuit.
The complaint cites Charter’s own website, which AT&T says distinguishes between “100% Fiber Internet” and “Fiber-Powered Internet.” According to the lawsuit, Charter’s FAQ says 100 percent fiber uses “a dedicated fiber infrastructure all the way from the network hub to the premises,” while “Fiber-Powered Internet uses an advanced HFC infrastructure, which includes fiber for the majority of the network path and coaxial to connect to the premises.”
AT&T says Charter’s advertising blurs that distinction and attempts to benefit from what the lawsuit calls the “fiber halo” in broadband marketing.
The lawsuit also points to Charter’s recent acquisition of Cox Communications, which AT&T says also uses “Fiber-Powered Internet” to market a hybrid fiber-copper network. AT&T alleges the acquisition positions Charter to expand the challenged advertising.
AT&T is asking the court to block Charter from describing hybrid fiber-copper service as “Fiber-Powered.” The company is also seeking damages, disgorgement of profits, enhanced damages, attorneys’ fees and a jury trial.
The full complaint is available to view by clicking or tapping here.
