Controversial Vodafone advert banned by Advertising Standards

Mobile broadband provider Vodafone has been ordered by the Advertising Standards Authority to cease using one of its adverts for its Sure Signal 3G booster.

The Sure Signal works by using a customer's home broadband connection to boost their 3G coverage, meaning that for some people with weak 3G signals where they live, the gadget can make their handsets more useful at home.  The device itself has been criticised as being an overpriced way for consumers to achieve the 3G coverage they should expect from their network anyway, but now the advert for the Sure Signal has come under fire as well.

The advert, which shows people leaning out of windows clearly attempting to get a signal, carries the phrase "Only Vodafone can guarantee mobile signal in your home" - a phrase which caused T-Mobile and O2 to lodge complaints with the ASA.

It's not uncommon for mobile providers to complain to the ASA about each others' advertising campaigns, but in this case the advertising watchdog upheld four out of seven complaints. The agency said that the advert failed to specify that consumers would need a decent broadband connection and a 3G handset to benefit from the Sure Signal; and that Vodafone's claim to 'guarantee' a signal was unsubstantiated.