We’re all for new beginnings and we love change. Anything permanent seems a little, well, stagnant, which is pretty much the reason we’ve avoided AT&T for the last always. That and the fact that Verizon will just not step off.

But now, things are changing. SBC Communications, which sounds so alarmingly generic that they must own everything, is buying AT&T. And Michael Bierut is watching. And cares enough to post to Design Observer on a Saturday.

And now, after 20 years of telecom chaos, SBC Communications, Inc., a decendant [sic] of Southwestern Bell, is taking over its former parent company: the child becomes the father to Ma, as it were. Their brand strategy lets them have their cake and eat it too. By retaining the AT&T name (“…an iconic name…amazing heritage…tremendous strength.” – Alan Siegel, Siegel and Gale), they signal continuity. By replacing the Bass sphere with a “fresh, new logo,” they signal vitality and change. Who’s going to argue with that?

Not us. We’d never argue with our bff.