AT&T was ordered to stop running ads claiming that the wireless carrier already offers cellular coverage from space.

AT&T intends to offer Supplemental Coverage from Space (SCS) and has a deal with AST SpaceMobile, a Starlink competitor that plans smartphone service from low Earth orbit satellites. However, the launch of AST SpaceMobile’s first five satellites is not scheduled until September.

T-Mobile, upset that AT&T ran an ad saying its satellite-to-cellular service was already available, filed a complaint with the advertising industry’s self-regulatory system, run by BBB National Programs. The BBB National Advertising Division (NAD) ruled against AT&T last month, and the carrier appealed to the National Advertising Review Board (NARB), which now also ruled against AT&T.

“It was undisputed that AT&T does not currently offer SCS service to its wireless customers… Therefore, the NARB panel recommended that AT&T discontinue the statement that SCS service is currently available to consumers or modify the statement to clearly and conspicuously communicate that SCS is not currently available,” the NARB said in a statement yesterday.

AT&T, also known for rebranding its 4G service as “5GE,” reluctantly agreed to the recommendation and released a new version of the satellite phone commercial with more specific disclaimers. “AT&T supports NARB’s self-regulatory process and will comply with NARB’s decision… However, we disagree with NARB’s conclusion recommending discontinuance or modification of the commercial,” AT&T said in its statement on the decision.

The controversial commercial, titled “Epic Bad Golf Day,” features actor Ben Stiller searching for a golf ball in various remote locations.

“The commercial ends by showing Mr. Stiller finally finding his golf ball in a desert wasteland… He then makes a cell phone call to golf champion Jordan Spieth, who is standing on a golf course, presumably so that Mr. Spieth can give him golfing tips,” NARB’s decision states. “One image in the commercial shows Mr. Stiller calling Mr. Spieth via a satellite relay. Another image shows Mr. Stiller’s phone with a message that a ‘satellite link is being established.'”

AT&T: Advertising should not be taken literally

AT&T’s appeal “points to a number of fanciful/ridiculous aspects of the commercial in Mr. Stiller’s Golf Ball Odyssey to argue that reasonable consumers will not receive a message that satellite service is currently available, but will understand that AT&T is burnishing its brand by pointing to technological features currently under development,” the panel wrote.

T-Mobile responded that “the use of humor does not relieve an advertiser of its obligation to ensure that advertising claims are truthful and not misleading,” and the NARB agreed.

“The Panel views the humorous/imaginative nature of Mr. Stiller’s antics as a means of attracting viewers’ attention, but also as a means of highlighting the utility of SCS technology – it allows calls to be made from remote locations not currently accessible by cellular service,” the industry self-regulatory group said. “The humor associated with Mr. Stiller’s golf misadventures does not negate the consumer communication that SCS service is currently available. In addition, the Panel does not accept AT&T’s argument that the Panel’s decision (or NAD’s appealed decision) would prejudice the use of humor in advertising.”

The ad originally included small text describing the satellite call pictured as a “demonstration of evolving technology.” The text was changed this week to say that “satellite calling is not currently available.”

“Even assuming consumers read (the disclaimer), a reasonable interpretation of ‘evolving technology’ is that the technology is currently available, although future improvements are expected,” NARB said.

The original version also included the text “The future of help is just an AT&T satellite call away.” The NARB concluded that this “statement can reasonably be interpreted to mean that the technology of the future is here now. The next image reinforces this message as it shows Mr. Stiller talking on a cell phone in a remote location and the accompanying image states, ‘Connection changes everything,’ a message aimed at the present, not the future.”

In the updated version of the ad, AT&T changed the text to say, “The future of help is just an AT&T satellite call away.”