Vodafone ad claims 'nothing' in regional Australia, sparks backlash

Vodafone Australia sparked complaints from regional Australians last week with an advertising campaign claiming there is "nothing" in rural and remote areas.

American comedian Ali Wong appears in the campaign, launched March 23, standing in the outback alongside an emu. "I don't know what the hell this is, but I do know that it can't use a phone," Wong says in the ad.

Wong continues in the ad: "Another big telco spends millions to build towers out here and charges customers for it. Well, Vodafone doesn't, cause clearly nothing's out here, except massive chickens."

Vodafone ends the advertisement by claiming it has "doubled its network to cover where 98 whatever per cent of you actually live".

Farmers and advocacy groups respond

Responses to the campaign online labelled it "arrogant" and "clueless". Shannon Crocker, a Queensland farmer near Muckadilla, told ABC News she complained to advertising regulator Ad Standards.

Crocker said she felt dismissed as someone living in the 2 per cent. "It's telling everybody that there's absolutely nothing past urban areas, which we all know is not true, considering that's where all of the country's food comes from," she told ABC News.

The Rural, Regional and Remote Communication Coalition, which represents 21 organisations, called the campaign "metro-centric" and "dismissive".

Danica Leys, Country Women's Association of NSW chief executive and RRRCC secretariat, said the remark was "just offensive".

Leys said implying regional areas do not matter was disrespectful. "For people in the city, poor connectivity can be frustrating. For people in the bush, poor connectivity can affect safety, education, health care, business operations and emergency response," she said.

Celebrating service for the 98 per cent while ridiculing the remaining Australians is not clever.

— Wendy Hick, RRRCC independent chair

Wendy Hick, RRRCC independent chair, labelled the advertisement "exclusionary".

Hick said the issue was respect, not competition. "This is not about whether companies compete hard on price or market share. It is about whether rural and remote Australians are treated with basic respect."

First Nations digital exclusion

Lyndon Ormond-Parker, a principal research fellow at RMIT University, said the campaign failed to recognise First Nations communities.

Ormond-Parker said the digital divide remained real for First Nations communities. "Saying there is nothing out there ignores these communities, including the 59 per cent of First Nations people living in regional and remote Australia."

RMIT released the 2025 Counting on Connectivity report in November. The report found 41 per cent of First Nations people are digitally excluded due to inequities in access, affordability and digital skills. Exclusion rates are double the rate of non-First Nations people.

National Rural Health Alliance chief executive Susi Tegen said rural and remote Australia was not a punchline.

Tegen said rural Australians needed investment, not mockery. "Many rural and remote Australians still struggle to reliably access emergency services like Triple Zero. What they need from telecommunications companies is not mockery. They need investment, reliability and respect."

Vodafone's response

Vodafone defended the campaign as humorous messaging. A spokesperson said the company used humour to make a clear point about regional coverage.

The spokesperson said Vodafone had committed to expanding its regional network. "We've made a long-term commitment to expand our regional network, more than doubling our mobile footprint, and continue to support initiatives like the Mobile Black Spot Program to extend and improve coverage."

The federal government provides funding through the Mobile Black Spot Program to improve mobile coverage in regional and remote areas.

Leys said all telecommunications companies needed to "lift their game" when it came to regional and rural coverage.

Leys said coverage gaps would remain in some areas. "We know that there are going to be areas of Australia where it is not feasible to have coverage, probably ever. But there are large areas of Australia that have experienced degradation in coverage or should, in this day and age, be able to have some form of coverage. But they simply don't."

Mobile phone networks cover about 27 per cent of Australia's landmass.