AT&T Invests in Washington, DC area Infrastructure

AT&T recently announced it has invested more than $825M in the greater DC area from 2010 through 2012, with a focus on expanding 4G LTE mobile Internet coverage and enhancing the overall performance of its networks.

“We know the mobile Internet has become central to our customers’ lives, and we’re committed to driving both investment and innovation to deliver the best possible experience over the AT&T network,” said Rob Forsyth, AT&T vice president and general manager for the greater Washington, DC/Baltimore area. “While third-party and internal testing shows that these investments are paying off with excellent service for Washington, DC area customers, we are continually planning and deploying network enhancements to improve service in the future.” AT&T has made more than 950 wireless network upgrades statewide, including:

• Activating new cell sites
• Adding capacity
• Upgrading cell sites to provide fast 4G LTE mobile Internet speeds
• Deploying high-capacity Ethernet connections to cell sites
• Adding or upgrading Distributed Antenna Systems, which boost wireless coverage and capacity in buildings and at major venues like convention halls or sports arenas.

The AT&T wireless network recently ranked No. 1 in Washington D.C. by RootMetrics, an independent research and testing organization. AT&T was named the RootMetrics RootScore Combined Award winner for its combination of call quality, text performance, and mobile Internet speed. The RootMetrics award is the result of more than 47,000 wireless test calls, texts and mobile Internet transmissions conducted during December 2012.

In addition, the AT&T network kept 99 percent of all Washington, DC-area wireless calls connected from October through December 2012.

"Across the Washington, DC area, this robust investment in the AT&T wireless and wireline networks is important to spurring the economy and creating jobs. In our wireless world, mobile and broadband networks create economic opportunities for health care, manufacturing, education, transportation and public safety and virtually every other economic sector,” said J. Michael Schweder, President, AT&T Mid-Atlantic. “Our investments will help transform DC into a tech capital.”