ST. PAUL, Minn., April 1, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- AT&T* has
invested nearly $525 million in its
best-in-class wireless and wired networks in Minnesota from 2011 through 2014, driving a
wide range of upgrades to reliability, coverage, speed and
performance for residents and business customers.
As part of its Project Velocity IP (VIP), an investment plan
focused on network enhancement and expansion, AT&T in 2014 made
346 network upgrades in Minnesota,
including new cell sites and the addition of wireless and wired
network capacity.
"With a growing range of connected home appliances, cars and
wearable devices, we depend more on network connectivity than ever
before," said Paul Weirtz,
Minnesota president, AT&T.
"AT&T's continued investment in Minnesota brings a host of new, innovative
opportunities for residents and businesses to connect with each
other and their customers."
Notable Minnesota network
enhancements in 2014 included:
- A Distributed Antenna System (DAS) at TCF Bank Stadium at the
University of Minnesota that quadrupled
the coverage that was available in 2013.
- A DAS at the Mayo Clinic campus in Rochester.
- The rollout of High Definition Voice calls (Voice Over LTE) in
the Minneapolis-St. Paul
metropolitan area.
"Continued economic growth in Minnesota depends on persistent innovation
which, increasingly, requires reliable and state of the art
Internet connectivity," said Bill
Blazar, interim president of the Minnesota Chamber of
Commerce. "These investments by AT&T will help
Minnesota businesses have the
resources and tools they need to change, grow and compete in
today's global economy."
AT&T provides the nation's most reliable 4G LTE network
today, covering more than 300 million Americans with 4G LTE
service.** AT&T's network also has the nation's strongest LTE
signal.*** During 2014, several markets in Minnesota were added to AT&T's extensive
LTE network, including Mankato,
Albert Lea, Red Wing and Hills.
AT&T* was recently recognized by FORTUNE magazine as the
Most Admired Telecommunications Company in the world in
2015. Additionally, FORTUNE ranked AT&T #47 among all
companies in all industries in its list of the Top 50 Most Admired
companies in the world. FORTUNE's Most Admired
Companies lists are among the most highly respected indicators of
corporate performance and reputation.
AT&T operates an extensive Wi-Fi network including more than
34,000 AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots at popular restaurants, hotels,
bookstores and retailers, and provides access to more than 1
million Hot Spots globally through roaming agreements. Most
AT&T smartphone customers get access to our entire national
Wi-Fi network at no additional cost, and Wi-Fi usage doesn't count
against customers' monthly wireless data plans.****
If the AT&T-DirecTV merger is approved by regulators, the
combined companies will have an opportunity to redefine the video
entertainment industry by delivering content to consumers across
multiple screens – mobile devices, TVs, laptops, the backseat
displays of connected cars, and even airplanes. AT&T has also
committed to expand and enhance its deployment of both wireline and
fixed wireless high-speed Internet to cover at least 15 million
customer locations across 48 states – most of them in underserved
rural areas.
For more information about AT&T's coverage in Minnesota or anywhere in the United States, consumers can visit the
AT&T Coverage Viewer. For updates on the AT&T wireless
network, please visit the AT&T network news page.
* AT&T products and services are provided or offered by
subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T
brand and not by AT&T Inc.
** Reliability claim based
on analysis of independent third party data re nationwide carriers'
4G LTE. LTE is a trademark of ETSI. 4G LTE not available
everywhere.
***Claim based ONLY on avg LTE signal
strength for national carriers
****A Wi-Fi enabled device
is required. Other restrictions apply. See attwifi.com
for details and locations.
To define a market, we rely on
the Core Based Statistical Areas (CBSA), as established by the
United States Office of Management and Budget. Minor
differences, if any, between annual totals reflect annual updating
of market boundaries in our record systems.
Cautionary Language Concerning Forward-Looking
Statements
Information set forth in this news release
contains financial estimates and other forward-looking statements
that are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results may
differ materially. A discussion of factors that may affect future
results is contained in AT&T's filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission. AT&T disclaims any obligation to update or
revise statements contained in this news release based on new
information or otherwise.
About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) helps millions
of people and businesses around the globe stay connected through
leading wireless, high-speed Internet, voice and cloud-based
services. We're helping people mobilize their worlds with
state-of-the-art communications, entertainment services and amazing
innovations like connected cars and devices for homes, offices and
points in between. Our U.S. wireless network offers customers the
nation's strongest LTE signal and the nation's most reliable 4G LTE
network. We offer the best global wireless coverage*. We're
improving how our customers stay entertained and informed with
AT&T U-verse® TV and High Speed Internet services.
And businesses worldwide are serving their customers better with
AT&T's mobility and highly secure cloud solutions.
Additional information about AT&T products and services is
available at http://about.att.com. Follow our news on Twitter at
@ATT, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/att and YouTube at
http://www.youtube.com/att.
© 2015 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved.
AT&T, the Globe logo and other marks are trademarks and service
marks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated
companies. All other marks contained herein are the property of
their respective owners.
*Global coverage claim based on offering voice and LTE data
roaming in more countries than any other U.S. based carrier, and
offering the most wireless smartphones and tablets that work in the
most countries.
Logo -
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120612/DA23287LOGO
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/att-invests-nearly-525-million-over-four-year-period-to-enhance-local-networks-in-minnesota-300058913.html
SOURCE AT&T Inc.