AT&T Unveils New Logo

[G-Man79]

Thought this might be of interest. Click on the AT&T link to see the new logo.

http://www.att.com/
New AT&T Unveils Logo
NOVEMBER 21, 2005
SAN ANTONIO -- The new AT&T (NYSE: SBC - News) began its first day as the nation's largest telecom company by introducing a revitalized corporate logo.

"Today's shift to a new brand and a new look symbolizes the strategic transformation under way at the new AT&T. It also reflects the fact that, while our brand has a long and proud heritage, the attributes that bring it to life for our customers are as fresh and new as ever," said Edward E. Whitacre Jr., chairman and CEO of AT&T Inc.

"The revitalized mark symbolizes these attributes -- innovation, integrity, quality, reliability and unsurpassed customer care," Whitacre added. "Our customers know that we're focused on keeping our promises, committed to operating honestly, and dedicated to bringing them new products that make a difference in their lives."

The new logo reinvigorates the AT&T globe -- one of the most recognized corporate symbols in the world. The new globe is three-dimensional, representing the expanding breadth and depth of services that the new AT&T family of companies provides to customers, as well as its global presence.

Transparency was added to the globe to represent clarity and vision. Lowercase type is now used for the "AT&T" characters because it projects a more welcoming and accessible image. The core of the new logo remains blue because both the SBC and AT&T brands are strongly associated with that color. The overall design more accurately represents the company that is leading the industry in delivering best-in-class services to consumers and business professionals.

Brand Transition Starts Today

The brand transition will be supported with the largest multimedia advertising and marketing campaign in either company's history, as well as through other promotional initiatives.

New AT&T advertisements in the SBC operating regions will be co-branded with the SBC and new AT&T logos in order to underscore the association of the companies and transfer SBC's powerful brand equity in its operating regions to the new brand.

An extensive re-branding initiative will occur over several months, with changes planned for the following:

* Nearly 50,000 company vehicles.
* More than 6,000 company buildings
* Roughly 40,000 uniforms and hardhats worn by company service representatives.
* More than 30 million monthly customer bills.
* Millions of business cards, customer information pamphlets, and phone and online directories.
* Company Web sites.


Customer bills will include the new AT&T logo on envelopes beginning in December and on actual bill statements beginning in February 2006. The company will use existing product and service names until all legal and regulatory name-change filings are complete. Employees of the combined enterprise will gather today at the new AT&T headquarters in San Antonio to usher in the new era, as Ed Whitacre officially unveils the new logo on the building's exterior. A similar event will take place with employees at the former AT&T Corp. headquarters in Bedminster, N.J.

[Kool]

"The revitalized mark symbolizes these attributes -- innovation, integrity, quality, reliability and unsurpassed customer care,"

Yep that's exactly what I thought when I saw it ;)

Actually I was thinking it looks like one of those psychedelic rubber balls from when I was a kid.

[Drorain]

hmm is that in vector? lol the 3d oh boy, we need it to be 3d because the old At&t logo didnt convey 3d nope not at all...

I dont know, I feel like they just like playing with their balls (logo) I think the old logo was a lot stronger, this brand no longer feels like the icon At&t had, this just falls into place amongst other 'tech' companies. it feels truly like a cliche design

[steve-o]

seems kind of wimpy. Might as well put two eyes and a smiley face on it.

[TheBluePanda]

Meh, its ok.

[Jason Fraker]

The old one was beautiful. I guess they had to make it ugly to match the world.

[danedawg99]

Well, think about it:
How are these companies going to stand out, if they don't fit in? ;)

[morea]

just remember, you're unique! Just like everybody else.

[Eraser Nubbin]

I think that the old one is really strong, simpler and too me it does not look dated.

[angerisagift]

i liked the old one better. the new one looks wierd and looks like a cheap imitation of the old one....especially since it has those halftone-like lines, that created the illusion of a sphere in the old one, on the new one that actually is a sphere it looks awkward. oh well, its their choice...

-sean

[Patrick Shannon]

Eeek...what is it with phone companies changing their branding and logos these days? Like the new Sprint logo.....that ugly yellow color, bleh!

[PersonasBinar]

hmmm I wonder what flavour it is?
It doesn't look like this logo is going to age nearly as gracefully as the other one. Nope, not at all. Well I guess it reflects the new middle of the road, not-as-smart-as-we-used-to-be stance. Been nice knowin' ya AT&T, call me for the yard sale.

[Drorain]

sprints ugly yellow I think is from a merger with nextel...but I might be wrong

[John G]

Looks like a cheap knock off of the new god awful TBS logo.

And where did Sprint pick up that horrid color combination?


*edit: oops didn't read page 2


I just hope and pray that IBM keeps their logo the same.

[reuber1]

The "Death Star" is now fully operational.

[D Lucks]

The "Death Star" is now fully operational.

LMAO!:D That's not new! It just "modernizing" the old, might I add affective, logo. It might look a tad better if there wasn't the darker blue circle on the inside. Yeah, no idea what the Sprint one is all about. Just doesn't make sense. I swear to god if any other company changes their Paul Rand logo they should be shut down!:mad: I'm talking about the IBM logo that someone had mentioned a few post back.

[Eraser Nubbin]

On a side note, I think the new sprint one is totally hot.
These guys must have just huge advertising budgets. I know Telus up hear must dump a tonne on ads, they have all kinds of roylaties being paid to musicians for all the pop music and then they have a different set of trained/cg animals in each ad, neither can be cheap i assume.

[embersyc]

Oh man that is pitiful.

[jlknauff]

I like it but more could have been done to make it stand out.

[Jeff Fisher LogoMotives]

I think it's fugly...

- J.

[Neuro]

What were they thinking?! Geeze!

[DOZER]

Can't wait to see how this one rips when we get new AT&T jobs in.

[The_Black_Knight]

I think they should have gone with something more like this, instead:

[Drorain]

I think it's fugly...

- J.

Quoted for truth

and that is the best reaction to it thus far, Your right Jeff ;)

[Logo-Mechanix]

Im with kool it looks like one of those super balls you got out of the gumball machine when you were a kid.

[SurfPark]

I'm more concerned that they've made the letters lowercased. Lowercase letters are more welcoming? Geeze, this reminds me of the dot com boom where every company was named "blahblahonline.com". The lowercase is really a modern trend because it goes against logic. AT&T is an acronym and should be in caps!

The logo is nothing new. UPS, Microsoft, Pepsi and several other corporate powers have converted their logos to 3D. Personally, I think this weakens the brand because it makes it harder to translate and has less impact. Sure, gradient covered objects are pretty on the screen, but are a lot harder to recognize instantly. We can read shapes quicker than colors and gradients interfere with the shapes! Heck, when you literally bend a logo like AT&T did, you can't even tell what it was anymore.

[JaCkinbOx]

Were it not for the side-by-side comparison between the old and the new AT&T logos, I might have a little difficulty making the connection.

[PrintDriver]

Jeff, my sentients exactly.
We sure ain't doing that one in vinyl on the next show...

Anyone know the term 'neoteny' a biological term meaning 'the carrying of infant features over into adulthood'?
That is the way the whole business system is shifting. Make it soft and immature and it appeals to the masses in a way that hard edge in your face stuff doesn't. Or at least that's the theory. Kinda like McDonalds boob arches and rotund labeling on soap products, etc. Quark is another perfect example.

Personally, I think all this dumbing down is a trend best dropped on its head.

[LeftBrain Artist]

Obviously at&t didn't want to be "late to the dance". I seem to recall that everybudy and their mutha has a 3D logo, and there was at&t with their pants down looking like fools.

Seriously though, visually, it is nicely done, even if it is hard on production. Whats more impressive than the logo is the wordsmithing on the story behind the logo to sell it to the execs and the public. Of course, we all know you could just as easily have written an equally as impressive piece of literature which puts the logo in a negative light. Might go something like this:

Today's shift to a new brand and a new look symbolizes the pathetic brown nosing under way at the new AT&T. It also reflects the fact that, while our brand has a long and proud heritage, we'd readily abandon that in favor of humoring the whims of bored executives," not really said by Edward E. Whitacre Jr., chairman and CEO of AT&T Inc.

"The revitalized mark symbolizes these attributes -- stagnancy, amorality, crapsmanship, shiftiness and unsurpassed customer ridicule," Whitacre didn't really add. "Our customers know that we're focused on keeping our money, committed to operating unfairly, and dedicated to bringing them old hand-me-downs that remind them of their poverty and our plutocracy."

The new logo parodies the AT&T globe -- one of the most recognized corporate symbols in the world, until now. The new globe is three-dimensional, representing an utter lack of vision by upper managment as we rush to our doom at the cliffs edge like so many lemmings, as well as roundness.

Transparency was added to the globe to represent our shallow and flighty nature. Lowercase type is now used for the "AT&T" characters because it strips away any semblance of importance previously attached to the logo - it represents a lack of caring for our company that we'll extend to the customer too. The core of the new logo remains blue because that's the color of the blood of our executives, and mirrors the cold, icy wasteland that is their hearts. The overall design more accurately represents the company that is leading the industry in crapping on consumers and business professionals

[JaCkinbOx]

Personally, I think all this dumbing down is a trend best dropped on its head.

Amen, brother! Preach it!

[PersonasBinar]

Imagine trying to put that on the side of a van. Do they have van anymore of has that all been outsourced?

[Drorain]

but no one listens to us designers...I mean what do we know...

[PrintDriver]

Uh... a 'designer' made that.
Not only made it. Sold it.

Looks like an old aggie I used to have. One of those old gnarly glass ones you don't see anymore.

[Drorain]

a focus group of designers thats what they needed...oh well...are you sure someones nephew didnt make this :p

[ChargerBill]

Looks like a marble to me. Honestly, looks like some designs I created when I did my first website in 1993...I had fun wrapping colors and swirls and patterns around balls and made those balls the buttons. looking back at it, it was hideous... Yep, AT&T ruined a good thing, the previous logo was better.

EDIT: I forgot ot mention the typestyle. Actually, I didn't even really see it...LOL It looks like a complete afterthough, doesn't it? :rolleyes:

[PersonasBinar]

a focus group of designers thats what they needed...oh well...are you sure someones nephew didnt make this :p

Billy, as your uncle in charge of corporate communication, I need your help in between classes. Here's the old logo, some crayons, and I need you to give it more 'umph'. You know, more 21century and today, somethings that says organization in flux. Something that screams "ripe for a takeover". Now here's your bologna sandwhich, off to school.

[fiend]

Paul Rand is turning over in his grave.

[Sketcher]

I don't like it at all. The first one was definately much stronger.

Companies always feel like they need to "change with the times" and give their company a new look, when usually, their old look was best. Just like with the new Webster Bank logo. I really liked the first one, but now it's no where near as strong.

[Robofunc]

Paul Rand is turning over in his grave.

The "old" AT&T logo was done by Saul Bass.

The new one smacks of stop-gap "good enough for the short term" thinking. Not the kind of idea you want driving a major corporate rebranding.

The Bass logo was NOT too "80s," at all, it just wasn't among the group of bastardized, neo-soft identities that are currently flashing in the pan.

This one will look dated in 10 years, maybe sooner.

[ChromeZephyr]

Someone needs to remind the senior executives of all these companies of the old saw, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

What an ugly P.O.S.

[Rocketpig]

The "Death Star" is now fully operational.

Don't be too proud of this technological terror you've constructed. The ability to destroy a planet is insignificant next to the power of a 3D logo.