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 12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728Steven G. Ford – 016492
ALVAREZ & GILBERT, PLLC
14500 N. Northsight Blvd., Ste. 216Scottsdale, AZ 85260Tel: 602-263-0203Fax: 480-686-8708sford@alvarez-gilbert.com Of Counsel:George J. Terwilliger, III
WHITE & CASE, LLP
1155 Avenue of the AmericasNew York, NY 10036Tel: (212) 816-8200Fax: (212) 354-8113gterwilliger@whitecase.com Attorneys for Plaintiff 
Cellco Partnership d/b/a Verizon Wireless
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURTFOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA
 CELLCO PARTNERSHIP d/b/aVERIZON WIRELESS,Plaintiff,v.SPRINT NEXTEL CORPORATION,Defendant.Case No. 2:09-CV-01480
COMPLAINT
Plaintiff Cellco Partnership d/b/a Verizon Wireless (“Verizon Wireless”), by andthrough its undersigned counsel, as and for its Complaint against Defendant Sprint NextelCorporation (“Sprint”), alleges as follows:1.
 
This is an action to halt false and misleading advertising by Sprint.
I. SUMMARY AND NATURE OF THE ACTION.
 
 2123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282.
 
Verizon Wireless and Sprint are competitors in the wirelesstelecommunications industry, a highly competitive business with over 250 millionsubscribers nationwide.3.
 
Sprint is falsely advertising that it was the sole recipient of J.D. Power andAssociates’ (“J.D. Power”) “Highest Call Quality” award for the West region of theUnited States, when in fact J.D. Power awarded
both
Verizon Wireless and Sprint its“Highest Call Quality” award for the West region.4.
 
Sprint also is falsely advertising that it won the J.D. Power “Highest CallQuality” award for areas other than the West region of the United States, when in factSprint received such recognition solely for the West region, and when in any event itshared such recognition with Verizon Wireless in that region.5.
 
Sprint’s false advertising misleads consumers and irreparably harmsVerizon Wireless.6.
 
Cellco Partnership d/b/a Verizon Wireless is a general partnershiporganized under the laws of the State of Delaware, with its principal place of business inBasking Ridge, New Jersey.
II. PARTIES, JURISDICTION, AND VENUE.
7.
 
Upon information and belief, Sprint Nextel Corporation is a corporationorganized under the laws of the State of Kansas, with its principal place of business inTopeka, Kansas.8.
 
This Court has jurisdiction over the subject matter of this action under 28U.S.C. § 1331 and 15 U.S.C. § 1121.9.
 
Venue is proper in this District under 28 U.S.C. § 1391(b). Uponinformation and belief, the false advertisements challenged in this Complaint have beendisplayed in this District and have run in publications distributed in this District, andSprint conducts substantial business in this District.10.
 
Verizon Wireless and Sprint are two of the four major wireless carriersproviding wireless telecommunications services in the United States. Withapproximately 250 million domestic wireless subscribers and over $130 billion in annual
III. GENERAL ALLEGATIONS.
 
 312345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728revenues in the United States alone, the wireless telecommunications service industry ishighly competitive.
1
11.
 
In the first quarter of 2009 alone, Verizon Wireless added approximately1.3 million new subscribers. Thus, on average, Verizon Wireless adds nearly 15,000 newcustomers daily, and many of those customers enter multi-year contracts.12.
 
On March 18, 2009, J.D. Power issued a press release entitled “J.D. Powerand Associates, The Gap in Call Quality Performance among Carriers Narrows AsCompetition Intensifies across the Wireless Service Industry,” (“J.D. Power PressRelease”), in which J.D. Power reported that “Verizon Wireless . . . tie[d] with SprintNextel to rank highest in the West region.” A true and accurate copy of the J.D. PowerPress Release, including the specific results for each region, is attached as Exhibit 2.13.
 
Recently, Sprint began to advertise that it received J.D. Power’s “HighestCall Quality” award in the West region.
2
14.
 
An example of the advertising comprising Sprint’s campaign is thefollowing current Sprint billboard, located in Seattle, Washington:Upon information and belief, a portion of suchadvertising took place within this District.See15.
 
The following bus shelter advertisement is located in San Francisco,California:Exhibit 3.
1
See
 
Fed. Communications Comm’n, 13th Annual Report and Analysis of Competitive Market Conditionswith Respect to Commercial Mobile Services, FCC No. 09-54, at 5-11 (2009) (copy attached as Exhibit 1).
2
As specified by J.D. Power in the J.D. Power Press Release, the West region includes Arizona,California, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota,Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming,. See Exhibit 2
 
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