CHICAGO, July 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- At
AT&T1, we invested more than $3 billion in our Illinois wireless and wired networks during
2013 - 2015.
These investments drive a wide range of upgrades to reliability,
coverage, speed and overall performance for residents and
businesses. They also enhance critical services that support public
safety and first responders.
"We're committed to providing our customers fast, reliable,
highly secure connectivity throughout the state. We want them to be
able to access the Internet at any moment, from almost any
device and anywhere," said Paul La
Schiazza, president, AT&T Illinois. "Our continued
investment in Chicago, the suburbs
and downstate brings a host of new, innovative opportunities for
Illinois residents and
businesses."
"In order for Illinois
to continue to thrive and serve its residents, it's important that
we have companies willing to invest in our state to bring
innovation and opportunity," said Congressman John Shimkus. "Private investment in
communications networks helps provide residents and businesses the
tools to compete and grow."
"Modern communications networks are essential for how we live
today. They help our citizens learn, find a job, connect with
family and friends and contact public safety officials and
other emergency responders," said Congressman Adam
Kinzinger. "The continued private investment coming into
Illinois will improve our citizens' lives and our
businesses' ability to compete. This is great news."
Notable Illinois network
enhancements in 2015 included:
- AT&T enhanced wireless high-speed Internet in Chicago buildings including: CTA, O'Hare
Airport, Midway Airport and Union Station.
- LTE expansions to improve data speeds were made in the
following counties:
- LaSalle, Lee, Ogle,
DeKalb, Iroquois, Cook, Will,
DuPage, Coles, Montgomery, Macoupin, Tazewell, Christian, Effingham and Sangamon.
- LTE capacity was added to hundreds of sites to increase access
to those improved data speeds (like adding lanes to a
highway).
- AT&T U-verse with GigaPower was launched in Chicago and several other Illinois communities
In 2016, for the second year in a row, FORTUNE magazine
recognized AT&T as the Most Admired Telecommunications Company
in the world. We also placed #48 among the Top 50 World's Most
Admired companies. This is our third year in a row on the Top 50
list – AT&T is the only communications company on the list. We
ranked #1 in all 9 attributes. This included innovation, financial
soundness and quality of products/services. FORTUNE's Most Admired
Companies lists are among the most highly respected indicators of
corporate performance and reputation.
We offer Internet customers a great combination of speed and
price. Additionally, AT&T high-speed Internet2
customers have access to our entire national AT&T Wi-Fi Hot
Spot Network at no additional charge3.
We also offer our award-winning
DIRECTV® service to eligible locations. Customers may be
eligible for AT&T U-verse TV service, a 100% digital service
available over our advanced network. In 2015, Woman's Choice
Awards® named AT&T U-verse TV "America's Most
Recommended Brand among women for Broadband, Television and Phone
Service."
AT&T GigaPower offers our fastest Internet speeds, up to
1Gbps4 over a 100% fiber network to more than 1.6
million locations across 22 major metro areas. We've
announced plans to expand the availability of Internet speeds up to
1Gbps to homes, apartments and small businesses in parts of 34
additional cities across the U.S. – which will total at least 56
metros served.
We plan to continue to roll out our fastest Internet services
over a 100% fiber network to reach more than 14 million additional
residential and commercial locations.
We have big plans for 2016. We'll be giving you the ability to
access and stream DIRECTV video services over a wired or wireless
Internet connection from any provider and from virtually any device
– smartphone, tablet, Smart TV, streaming media hardware or PC. We
plan for each service to come with a set number of simultaneous
sessions. These services will not require annual contracts,
satellite dishes or set-top boxes.
We have an extensive Wi-Fi network with more than 40,000
AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots at popular restaurants, hotels, bookstores
and retailers. We provide access to Wi-Fi at more than 1 million
Hot Spots around the world. Most AT&T smartphone and home
Internet customers get access to our entire national Wi-Fi network
at no additional cost. Wi-Fi usage doesn't count towards customers'
monthly wireless data plans.5
To learn more about our coverage in Illinois, or anywhere in the U.S., visit
the AT&T Coverage Viewer. For updates on the AT&T wireless
network, please visit the AT&T network news page.
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 around the globe connect
with leading entertainment, mobile, high speed Internet and voice
services. We're the world's largest provider of pay TV. We have TV
customers in the U.S. and 11 Latin American countries. We offer the
best global coverage of any U.S. wireless provider.* And we help
businesses worldwide serve their customers better with our 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.
© 2016 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 discounted voice and
data roaming; LTE roaming; voice roaming; and world-capable
smartphone and tablets in more countries than any other U.S. based
carrier. International service required. Coverage not
available in all areas. Coverage may vary per country and be
limited/restricted in some countries.
1 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.
2 Geographic and service restrictions apply to
AT&T U-verse services. Call or go to www.att.com/u-verse to see
if you qualify.
3 Access includes AT&T Wi-Fi Basic. Wi-Fi
enabled device required. Other restrictions apply. See
www.attwifi.com for details and locations.
4 Internet speed claims represent maximum network
service capability speeds. Actual customer speeds may vary based on
factors including site traffic, content provider server capacity,
internal network management factors, and device capabilities and
are not guaranteed. For more information, go to
att.com/speed101.
5 A Wi-Fi enabled device required. Other
restrictions apply. See attwifi.com for details and
locations.
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SOURCE AT&T Inc.