New AT&T White Paper: How To Shoot Yourself In The Foot

At the risk of belaboring a point I made Monday (The Death of A Brand), why does AT&T want to eliminate their Cingular brand when you see news like this that points to the following facts:
1) Cingular is the nation’s largest wireless carrier;
2) They picked up 2.4 million new subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2006 (up 33% over last year);
3) Cingular appears to be kicking Sprint’s and Verizon’s butt in the process.

It seems even more incredulous AT&T would sacrifice the Cingular name when you see quotes from the story demonstrating their acquired brand power: “‘[Cingular] worked very, very hard,’ ABI Research analyst Lance Wilson said. ‘The inclusion of new phones, such as Apple’s iPhone and RIM’s Pearl, increased customer service and its ‘Power Up’ advertising are paying off.’”

Poof!