Vodafone, part-owned by Hutchison Australia (ASX: HTA), has claimed to have the fastest 4G network in the country but Telstra (ASX: TLS) has caught it out.
Vodafone, which has faced a rapidly declining number of mobile customers, previously said its new 4G network is the fastest in any of the Australian capital cities. According to The Australian, Telstra sent a letter demanding Vodafone change its advertising campaign because it was untrue that Australia's third biggest telco had the fastest network in each city. In addition, Vodafone claimed its mobile services covered 96% of the Australian population.
Bill Morrow, CEO of Vodafone, however told ABC's Inside Business that he doesn't expect Telstra to pursue the claims. "We can offer the fastest speeds with the current 4GLTE standard and that's faster than what Telstra or Optus can do across all five cities," he said.
In the letter to Vodafone Mr Morrow claimed Telstra said, "You can't say you're the first to bring these fastest speeds across Australia like we do." Telstra still has the fastest speeds in both Adelaide and Perth and connects more Australians than any other carrier.
Foolish takeaway
It seems Mr Morrow is going to every media outlet possible in an attempt to rebrand Vodafone amid massive drops in its profit and customer base. Telstra however continues to draw in more customers despite the domestic market already reaching saturation point.
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Motley Fool contributor Owen Raszkiewicz does not have a financial interest in any of the mentioned companies.