SPRINGFIELD, Ill., — At AT&T[i], we’ve invested more than $7.2 billion in our Illinois wireless and wired networks during 2011-2018. These investments boost reliability, coverage, speed and overall performance for residents and businesses. The company improved critical services that support Public Safety and first responders using the FirstNet communications platform. And, it helped meet the needs of customers in largely rural areas through its participation in the FCC’s Connect America Fund.
AT&T’s wireless network covers more than 99% of all Americans and has become the fastest wireless network in the nation, according to the second quarter 2019 results from tests taken with Speedtest® and analyzed by Ookla®. 2
In 2018, AT&T made 1,751 wireless network upgrades in Illinois. The company added new cell sites and increased network capacity.
“This private sector investment is crucial for Illinois, because it will pave the path to 5G mobile services in the years ahead,” said Eileen Mitchell, president of AT&T Illinois. “Thanks to Illinois policies that encourage private companies to invest more in wireless infrastructure, we’re speeding our wireless build out plans to strengthen our mobile network in Illinois. We’re helping attract new jobs and innovation to the state while we give our customers the tools they need to stay connected and entertained.”
The AT&T LTE network covers more than 400 million people in North America. NotableIllinois network enhancements in 2018 included:
- Making more than 1,712 capacity upgrades
- Adding 4 new cell sites
- Expanding 4G LTE to 4 cell sites
- Improving 31 DAS networks
By building out its 4G LTE network, we’re boosting network speeds and capacity, as we continue to expand the availability of our network and upgrade our technology.
Additionally, for the 5th consecutive year is has landed on Fortune magazine’s list of the “World’s Most Admired” companies. It’s also the 6th year in a row it has appeared on the Global Top 50 list – no other telecom company made the Top 50.
Transforming Public Safety Communications
FirstNet is Public Safety’s dedicated, nationwide communications platform. It is for all first responders – career and volunteer, urban or rural. It’s bringing public safety communications into the 21st century with new, innovative capabilities, helping first responders connect to the critical information they need – every day and in every emergency.
Building upon its current and planned investments in Illinois, the company continues to extend the reach and increase the capacity of the FirstNet communications platform:
– Deployed Band 14 spectrum in more than 600 markets nationwide, including Chicago, Aurora, Joliet, Rockford, Springfield and Peoria in Illinois, to name a few. Band 14 is high-quality spectrum provided by the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet). Its signal covers larger geographic areas with less infrastructure to better support rural communities, and it can better reach in-building in more urban areas as compared to higher-MHz spectrum.
– Illinois first responders enjoy the fastest overall experience on FirstNet, compared to any commercial network in the nation, thanks to the specialized capabilities enabled by the physically separate and dedicated FirstNet network core, like always-on priority and preemption. 3
– Public safety agencies subscribed to FirstNet have 24/7 access to a nationwide fleet of 75 deployable network assets. These assets can either be deployed for planned events or called upon in emergencies to help first responders stay connected and operate faster, safer and more effectively when lives are on the line.
FirstNet is built with AT&T in a public-private partnership with the First Responder Network Authority – an independent agency within the federal government. This helps ensure that the FirstNet communications platform and service offerings meet the short- and long-term needs of the public safety community.
Commitment to rural America
Through its participation in the FCC’s Connect America Fund universal service program, AT&T has been helping to meet the connectivity needs of customers in largely rural areas and to expand the opportunities enabled by internet access. By the end of 2020, AT&T will have used funds from this FCC program to help deploy, maintain and offer internet access and voice services to more than 1.1 million mostly rural homes and small business locations in FCC-identified areas. By the end of 2018, we offered high-speed internet access to over 11,400 locations across Illinois in mostly rural areas through technologies like Fixed Wireless Internet.
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