Digital Without the Details

Bruce Barket, a New York criminal attorney, confesses he doesn't have a clue as to how his new digital PCS phone works.

"All phone services are basically the same to me," said Barket, a Sprint PCS customer. "I just want to pick up a phone and be able to use it."

The fact that his new phone service is digital had "absolutely zero" to do with his purchase, Barket claimed. He cited lower monthly airtime rates as the reason he switched from Bell Atlantic Mobile to Sprint PCS. When asked if he knew that CDMA was the digital standard Sprint PCS uses to deliver his phone calls, the attorney admitted he had never heard of it.

"Is this something I should know about?" he asked. Not if the advertising campaigns of several digital cellular and PCS carriers are any indication. While U.S. carriers are waging a noisy industry war to determine which digital protocol will win the masses, the terms CDMA, TDMA and GSM are either being ignored or relegated to the small print when it comes to marketing materials aimed at consumers.

In a recent consumer survey by Ameritech Cellular Services, only a handful of respondents (about 8%) claimed to have heard of TDMA, CDMA or GSM. Virtually none could identify what the acronyms meant. Moreover, 60% said they were indifferent to the technology associated with their wireless phones and service, as long as their phones worked when and how they wanted them to.

"We don't get into bits and bytes for the average consumer," said Tom Murphy, a Sprint PCS spokesperson. Murphy maintains that customers primarily care that calls "go through, sound clear and can be made in major cities across the United States." Sprint PCS does not mention that it uses CDMA technology in its advertising.

"Promoting CDMA to consumers is irrelevant," Murphy said. "We'd rather they equate the benefits of the technology with Sprint rather than with CDMA."

Other carriers echoed his views.

NO MENTION In consumer advertising, Comcast does not mention that its cellular service uses TDMA technology, according to Melissa Nichols, Comcast vice president of corporate communications.

"There's enough confusion just about digital vs. analog without complicating things even more by throwing in TDMA and CDMA," Nichols said.

Allen Bourne, director of marketing communications for PrimeCo, shares the viewpoint that terms such as CDMA or TDMA go "above consumers' heads." Bourne said, "It bears explanation if you mention it, and advertising shouldn't have that role. Advertising needs to answer consumers' question of 'what's in it for me?' by speaking in terms of benefits."

But completely pushing technology to the sidelines won't bode well for consumers in the long run, argues wireless industry analyst Ira Brodsky, president of Datacomm Research. Brodsky said carriers are hesitant to promote their chosen wireless standards because doing so requires explaining the technology to sales representatives, who in turn may confuse matters for consumers. Still, consumers need to know what technology they are buying into when they purchase their phones and service, he said.

"Saying consumers don't need to know which technology their wireless providers use is like saying you don't need to know whether you're buying a Windows-based PC or a Mac when you buy a computer," Brodsky said. Although he holds consumers ultimately responsible for learning everything they can about their wireless services, Brodsky said carriers could help in the education process by creating brochures or placing information on their web sites about CDMA, TDMA and GSM.

STANDARDS ORGANIZATIONS Doing their best to promote awareness for their respective digital standards are the newly formed GSM Alliance, a consortium of seven U.S. PCS carriers, and the CDMA Development Group (CDG), with its cdmaOne, the official name for IS-95-based CDMA systems. Both groups have developed logos and are encouraging carriers to display them on all advertising, collateral, point-of-purchase displays and handsets.

"We aren't surprised at this early stage that use of the cdmaOne name and logo is not widespread in the United States," said Rick Goetter, marketing manager for the CDG. "That's the way it was for Intel at one time, and now everyone wants to know if their computers have 'Intel inside.' There will come a point when people will want to know what technology their wireless phone uses."

If carriers are skirting the issue of which digital standard they've adopted, they also are treading lightly around explaining the broader concept of digital technology. Again, carriers cite the commonly held belief that consumers are less interested in the technology they're using than the quality of service and features they receive.

"We generally avoid trying to explain digital technology," admitted Jim Wurm, director of marketing for Airadigm. "We'll tell them it's a digital service, but then we'll go right on to what it means to them: encryption, better voice quality, longer battery life and so on. We say it's like the landline phone on your desk, only you can be more productive because your PCS phone can go with you everywhere."

Carriers say they are candid with business users and consumers alike when providing information about coverage. Many carriers advise customers to study coverage maps before buying to avoid any disappointments that may come when they discover they can't make calls everywhere with their new digital phones.

"We try to be very up front in our sales efforts to understand customers' needs. We make it clear that our footprint covers a certain area," said PrimeCo's Bourne. "If the customer has needs beyond our coverage area, we'd rather not have him or her come on our service."

Comcast's Nichols acknowledged that "all things are not created equal" when it comes to coverage.

"We're seeing a lot of hype out there when it comes to the way other carriers are stating their coverage," she said. "Carriers need to be honest with customers about where their coverage begins and ends."

Carriers also promote dual-mode phones as a way to satisfy customers who frequently travel beyond their coverage areas. And while digital phones aren't cheap these days, carriers are finding that free analog phones don't sway customers who are interested in digital service.

"It's easy to sell against companies offering analog phones for unbelievable prices," said Terry Hayes, senior director of sales for Omnipoint. "With digital phones, there's no contract to get locked into, and there's more features and better quality. Besides, consumers don't mind spending money on consumer electronics. Good cordless phones cost around $200."

Consumers who plan to use their wireless phones only occasionally are steered by carriers toward purchasing analog phones.

"We're not interested in customers who want to throw their phones in the glovebox," said Murphy of Sprint. "Our competition is wireline, and we want customers who will use our service. We're trying our best to make wireless a consumer product."

Carriers are flexing their creative muscles with TV advertising for digital service. A series of 30-second spots from PrimeCo features a cuddly little alien who has come back to earth searching for the digital phone he left there on a previous trip. On a spot for Airadigm's Einstein PCSsm service, a spokesperson demonstrates what it feels like to be locked into a contract by donning a Velcro suit and jumping onto a wall of Velcro.

And a smooth-talking parrot posing as a man-about-town uses an Omnipoint phone to arrange dinner details with a blind date. Asks the unsuspecting blonde on the other end of the line, "Do you look as good as you sound?"

When it comes to print advertising, carriers are borrowing some of the same tactics they've used for years to promote analog service. In other words, make the primary offer some kind of free airtime package, throw in a phone at a reduced rate (by all means include a photo of a phone), and provide a list of retailers.

A slew of ads from AT&T Wireless, Bell Atlantic Mobile, Omnipoint and Sprint PCS that appeared in the New York area this past December were virtually indistinguishable from one another.