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AT&T Brings 3G Mobile Broadband Network to Virginia's Northern NeckKING GEORGE, Va., Dec. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AT&T* today announced the availability of its third generation (3G) mobile broadband network in King George, Essex and Caroline counties in Virginia, opening the door to a new era of mobile services, devices and feature-rich audio and video content for customers in the Northern Neck area. AT&T's 3G wireless network is now accessible to customers throughout the communities of Dahlgren, Jersey, King George, Ninde, Sealston, Caret, Bowling Green, Milford, and Port Royal. For this expansion, AT&T's 3G wireless network - the nation's fastest - was added to 13 cell sites. This 3G network extension also boosts coverage along one of the southeastern seaboard's main thoroughfares, Route 301. These investments complement AT&T's recently announced 3G expansion in the central Virginia communities of Culpeper, Locust Dale, Syria, Haywood, Orange and Louisa, as well as 3G launches in Roanoke, Harrisonburg, and Blacksburg. In addition to extending mobile broadband coverage across Virginia, AT&T has added 83 new cell sites in the state this year. "Demand for wireless bandwidth while on the go is growing," said J. Michael Schweder, President, AT&T Mid-Atlantic Region. "This 3G network expansion boosts wireless experiences for consumers, whether it's for sharing photos with friends, watching a movie, listening to music, or checking the latest sports scores on their mobile device." The network extension is part of AT&T's ongoing efforts to drive innovation and investment to deliver the benefits of smartphones and mobile broadband for customers. More smartphone customers have chosen AT&T over any other U.S. competitor, and AT&T is committed to driving continual enhancement of network capabilities to meet these customers' ever-growing mobile broadband needs. "Delivering dependable wireless coverage to Northern Neck residents is our ultimate objective," added Rob Forsyth, vice president and general manager for AT&T in northern Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Maryland. "From 2006 to 2008, AT&T's total capital investment in its wireless and wireline networks in Virginia was nearly $475 million. This recent 3G network expansion will help our customers ride the leading edge of mobile broadband with emerging devices and thousands of mobile applications." AT&T matches its network investment with unsurpassed choice in the range of devices, services and applications compatible with its 3G network - the nation's fastest, according to independent testing. AT&T offers a wide variety of devices from more than a dozen manufacturers, including handsets that are compatible with six different operating systems and five different e-mail applications. Our Media Mall 2.0 offers more than 90,000 content options, and customers can download additional applications over the Internet. Additionally, AT&T supports a community of more than 20,000 application developers via its devCentral portal. Recently, AT&T announced plans to further upgrade its 3G network nationwide with HSPA 7.2 technology to deliver considerably faster mobile broadband speeds. The upgrades are planned to begin in the fourth quarter, with completion expected in 2011. Supporting this initiative is AT&T's ongoing deployment of additional backhaul capacity to cell sites, which will support today's unprecedented growth in mobile data traffic as well as the future demands of next-generation networks. AT&T's 3G mobile broadband network is based on the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) family of technologies that includes GSM and UMTS, the most open and widely used wireless network platforms in the world. AT&T's 3G network is available in more than 350 major metropolitan areas. AT&T also offers 3G data roaming in more than 185 countries, as well as voice calling in more than 215 countries. More information about AT&T's 3G coverage in the Northern Neck or anywhere in the United States may be found at http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/, which indicates quality of coverage based on a street address, intersection, ZIP code, or even a landmark. For updates on the AT&T wireless network, please visit http://www.att.com/networknews. *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. About AT&T AT&T Inc. 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. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation's fastest 3G network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet and voice services. AT&T offers the best wireless coverage worldwide, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verse(SM) and AT&T | DIRECTV(SM) brands. The company's suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world. In domestic markets, AT&T's Yellow Pages and YELLOWPAGES.COM organizations are known for their leadership in directory publishing and advertising sales. In 2009, AT&T again ranked No. 1 in the telecommunications industry on FORTUNE® magazine's list of the World's Most Admired Companies. 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/. This AT&T news release and other announcements are available at http://www.att.com/newsroom and as part of an RSS feed at http://www.att.com/rss. Or follow our news on Twitter at @ATTNews. Find us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ATT to discover more about our consumer and wireless services or at http://www.facebook.com/ATTSmallBiz to discover more about our small business services. © 2009 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. 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. AT&T Inc. CONTACT: Beth Gautier, of AT&T Inc., Office, +1-202-659-5888, Mobile,+1-202-270-5724, [email protected] Web Site: http://www.att.com/ |