AT&T Keeps Music Fans Connected During 2014 Austin City Limits
AUSTIN, Oct. 1, 2014 — With 75,000 music fans expected to attend the 2014 Austin City Limits Music Festival (ACL Fest) per day, AT&T is deploying its own rock star line-up to please the crowd.
As a key sponsor of ACL, AT&T is enhancing mobile connectivity like never before during the festival. Through the deployment of two MegaCOWs (Cell Site on Wheels), each complete with one 5 multi-beam antenna and one 9 multi-beam antenna, AT&T will enhance its award-winning 4G LTE network already deployed in Austin. The deployment will provide attendees with as much as four times the traffic capacity of a traditional single-beam antenna, and help ensure that attendees are able to share their favorite festival moments through texts, tweets and calls.
Taking it a step further, AT&T has worked with ACL Festival and TOURTech to deploy temporary Wi-Fi throughout select areas of the park, including the Barton Springs Beer Garden and near the concessions at Austin Eats, making coverage even more reliable and providing attendees with a safer experience.
“This music festival has become one that is both locally and nationally recognized, drawing in tens of thousands of festival goers and music lovers every year,” said Jason Cardwell, director of sales for Austin. “As a growing part of the Austin community, we want to make sure that attendees of the festival stay safe and connected. The enhanced network connectivity that AT&T is providing will enrich the ACL Festival experience through an improved ability to share photos, tweets, texts and calls.”
Beyond network preparations, AT&T is the presenting sponsor of the festival’s official mobile app. The app is available in Google Play and Apple Stores for free, and will keep music fans plugged-in and up-to-date on all things ACL, by offering a full festival map and the ability to plan and share customizable lineups. As an added bonus, this year AT&T is launching a new phase of the app that will feature a festival quiz. Music gurus that answer the festival-related questions correctly will have the chance to win exclusive prizes and experiences, including pairs of 3-day VIP passes to ACL Music Fest, merch packages and tickets to exclusive ACL Late Night Shows.
Additionally, attendees can check out U-verse with AT&T GigaPower Graffiti artists, who will highlight the speed of the AT&T GigaPower network through the creation of unique art in one hour. Attendees will be able to submit their ideas to the artists for inspiration.
Across Austin and Texas, AT&T’s 2014 investments have resulted in expansions and enhancements of our wireline and 4G LTE network to provide ultra-fast speeds. Wireline investments include the expansion of U-verse with AT&T GigaPower, which launched first in Austin in 2013.** Additionally, our 4G LTE – the nation’s most reliable 4G LTE network *** – now covers more than 300 million.
AT&T’s focus to deliver the best possible mobile Internet experience goes beyond 4G LTE to embrace additional connection technologies. AT&T owns and operates 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 hotspots 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.
AT&T invested nearly $550 million in its Austin area wireless and wireline networks from 2011 through 2013. Over the past six years (2008 to 2013), AT&T invested more than $140 billion into its wireless and wireline networks, when you combine capital investment and acquisitions of spectrum and wireless operations. Over the past six years, AT&T has invested more capital into the U.S. economy than any other public company. In a September 2013 report, the Progressive Policy Institute ranked AT&T No. 1 on its list of U.S. “Investment Heroes.”
For more information about AT&T’s coverage in Austin 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.
** Limited availability in select areas. May not be available in your area. Expanding availability during 2014. Go to att.com/gigapower to see if you qualify.
*** Claim based on analysis of independent third party data re national carriers’ 4G LTE. LTE is a trademark of ETSI. 4G LTE not available everywhere.
**** A Wi-Fi enabled device required. Other restrictions apply. See www.attwifi.com for details and locations.
About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) is a premier communications holding company and one of the most honored companies in the world. Its subsidiaries and affiliates – AT&T operating companies – are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and internationally. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation’s most reliable 4G LTE network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet, voice and cloud-based services. A leader in mobile Internet, AT&T also offers the best wireless coverage worldwide of any U.S. carrier, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV service with the AT&T U-verse® brand. The company’s suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world.
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