National Advertising Division finds Comcast wireless ads are misleading

Comcast has been running some ads claiming that its Xfinity Mobile costs 30% less than T-Mobile as well as ads touting Xfinity’s $30 per line offer. But T-Mobile complained to the National Advertising Division (NAD) of BBB National Programs, a self-regulating body. NAD did an analysis and recommended that Comcast discontinue the ads or, at the least, modify the ads to include clarifying information.

The Comcast ads have appeared in a print mailer, an online paid Google ad, a commercial featuring the singer Becky G, and a commercial featuring characters from the animated movie “The Bad Guys.”

T-Mobile complained that Comcast’s ads did not disclose all material information associated with the competing plans. And T-Mobile also said the ads incorrectly implied that Xfinity is always less expensive than T-Mobile without including information about exceptions.

In regard to the 30% less claim, NAD said consumers expect an “apples-to-apples” comparison and Comcast needed to provide relevant details.

NAD also noted that Comcast’s advertised price of $30 per line applies only when the consumer purchases four lines. In addition, a consumer must be an Xfinity Internet subscriber to obtain the $30 per line offer; and the “unlimited data” promised by the $30 per line offer is subject to data throttling after 20GB of usage.

In response, Comcast stated that it “agrees to comply with NAD’s recommendations,” although Comcast hasn’t specified whether it will modify its ads or drop them entirely.

The two service providers have been going at each other in terms of marketing. In October Comcast set up a new website and created an ad campaign, claiming that T-Mobile’s 5G broadband service is inferior to Comcast’s wired broadband.

And in August NAD told T-Mobile it should stop making the implied claim in its TV commercial that consumers can save 50% over the price of cable broadband and other home internet competitors.