In the highly competitive and rapidly expanding market of high-speed internet service, Time Warner Cable may have stepped too far across the line with its latest series of ads targeting Verizon Communications. The telecommunications company filed a lawsuit on Wednesday, claiming that its rival"s TV ads falsely imply that Verizon"s FiOS video service requires a satellite dish, that it does not include phone, broadband and video, and that Time Warner"s network is better.
Verizon wants an injunction barring Time Warner from running the ads and a public retraction of the stated claims. "Once customers choose Time Warner over Verizon FiOS, switching costs, inertia, and the perceived inconvenience of switching providers keep many customers from changing," according to the lawsuit. Naturally, Time Warner looks at the matter quite differently. "We feel the lawsuit is without merit and we look forward to defending against it in the appropriate venue," Time Warner Cable spokesman Alex Dudley said.