Company to Expand 3G Service to More Than 80 New Cities, Complete Upload
Broadband Speed Enhancements
New Milestones Mark Next Step in Direction Toward Long-Term Evolution (LTE)
SAN ANTONIO, Feb. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AT&T is casting a wider
Net for mobile customers this year by building out its network to make
catching a high speed wireless Web connection easier coast-to-coast.
AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) today announced highlights of the company's 2008
wireless network expansion plans, including the deployment of
third-generation (3G) wireless broadband service to more than 80 additional
cities in the United States through the course of the year. The planned
expansion is expected to deliver AT&T 3G services to nearly 350 leading
U.S. markets by the end of 2008, including all of the top 100 U.S. cities.
The 3G initiative will include the roll out of more than 1,500 additional
cell sites nationwide.
Other plans for the new year include completion of the nation's first
High Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA)-enabled network by the middle of
the year. The AT&T 3G network now delivers typical downlink speeds ranging
between 600 and 1,400 Kilobits per second (Kbps), as well as faster uplink
speeds, ranging from 500 and 800 Kilobits per second (Kbps). The faster
uplink speeds allow AT&T's HSUPA-enabled laptop users to more quickly send
large files and take full advantage of the latest interactive Internet and
business applications.
The company's wireless network is based on GSM (Global System for
Mobile Communications) technologies, the most open and widely used wireless
network platform in the world, supporting 86 percent of the people
worldwide who use wireless devices. This platform also positions AT&T to
continually adopt next-generation technologies.
"Fast wireless broadband is the foundation for a whole range of new and
emerging applications that our customers are adopting, including everything
from social networking to sending live video and large business files,"
said Ralph de la Vega, president and CEO for AT&T's wireless unit. "With
these aggressive initiatives, we're expanding the scope and the speed of
our 3G capabilities, connecting people with their world and enabling more
customers to do more with their wireless devices, wherever they may be.
"We're also planning for the future by establishing a clear path to a
4G network that will meet the needs of our customers for years to come,"
said de la Vega.
The deployment of HSUPA this year is the next step in the evolution of
AT&T's 3G network, with further enhancements and speed boosts expected in
the near future. This year's HSUPA deployment will complete the transition
of the AT&T 3G network to High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) standards,
marking the only full transition by any wireless provider in the United
States to this latest generation of wireless broadband capabilities.
As customer needs continue to evolve and grow in the future, AT&T's
global leadership in deployment of GSM technologies positions the company
to continuously evolve its network to meet those needs. The evolution
towards HSPA+ and LTE technologies will enable the company to continue to
deliver higher speeds and capacity in the years to come.
"From the beginning, our wireless network has been designed with the
future in mind," said de la Vega. "The capabilities of 3G standards will
continue to expand over the next several years, enabling us to stay well
ahead of our customers' broadband needs. And looking even further into the
future, our existing technologies provide the ideal platform for a smooth
transition to next-generation platforms."
AT&T's GSM technology also offers customers the largest international
roaming footprint. AT&T devices work in 196 countries and regions --
accounting for more than 90 percent of the planet. All GSM customers in
those countries can roam on the AT&T network in the United States as well.
About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is a premier communications holding company. Its
subsidiaries and affiliates, AT&T operating companies, are the providers of
AT&T services in the United States and around the world. Among their
offerings are the world's most advanced IP-based business communications
services and the nation's leading wireless, high speed Internet access and
voice services. In domestic markets, AT&T is known for the directory
publishing and advertising sales leadership of its Yellow Pages and
YELLOWPAGES.COM organizations, and the AT&T brand is licensed to innovators
in such fields as communications equipment. As part of its three-screen
integration strategy, AT&T is expanding its TV entertainment offerings.
Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services
provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at
http://www.att.com.
(C) 2008 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. AT&T, the
AT&T logo and all other marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T
Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated companies. For more
information, please review this announcement in the AT&T newsroom at
http://www.att.com/newsroom.
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