Verizon Wireless responds to iPhone frenzy

I'm trying my best not to write too much about the iPhone on this blog. But the rest of the blogosphere is doing it so why not?

Today, Apple and AT&T will open doors at 6pm to begin selling the iPhone. Unless you've been under a rock, you already know the iPhone is the most talked about (and blogged about) product of the year. Since early this week, die-hard gadget geeks have been forming lines at stores across the country.

You may not have seen this in the headlines, but Verizon Wireless has some news today as well:

"On June 29 Verizon Wireless stores and kiosks will be open until 9:00
p.m. in most markets to give customers plenty of time to Test Drive the
leading wireless company with the most reliable voice and data network." (Press Release)

Ugh.....what?

From a PR standpoint, what is the goal here? First, the fact that stores are open on a Saturday is clearly not news. Second, this is certainly not newsworthy enough to make headlines on iPhone Day. Lastly, it just signals to stakeholders that Verizon Wireless is concerned about its newest competition.

Rather than competing with Apple and AT&T for new customers today, Verizon Wireless should be trying to hold on to the customers in risk of switching. If anything, they should have announced a "Customer Appreciation Event" at stores today. Or customer service reps could have called customers with a free offer. A few free music downloads and some prize drawings at stores would have gone a long way.

I didn't see any reaction from Sprint and T-Mobile. Sometimes, the best response is to do nothing.