Challenge
AT&T's acquisition of cable television giants TCI and MediaOne created a giant of a situation: How could the company obtain the required cable franchise transfers from more than 1,000 municipal, regional and state governments without becoming subject to a whole new class of government regulations?
 
Lying in wait for AT&T were the local and regional telephone companies. They viewed AT&T's goal of offering a package of video, local and long distance telephone, plus Internet access services, as a direct threat to their own future growth. These competitors organized a national opposition group to lobby for a bevy of new regulations that would dampen the combined companies' revenue projections and delay the merger.
 
Approach
For a problem with so many audiences and a national spotlight, AT&T and Gogerty Stark Marriott put together an all-star team. It included AT&T and MediaOne staff, local political consultants in the affected markets, and specialists in grassroots organizing and media.
 
A key component was the central messaging committee comprised of consultants from both major political parties with experience in presidential and other nationwide campaigns.
 
Results
Armed with research, up-to-date information from local consultants, and help from experts with national expertise, AT&T was able to prepare in advance for opposition attacks and craft a unified, and locally specific, message.