AT&T is
expanding capacity and coverage in and around Raymond James Stadium in
Tampa in anticipation of increased traffic on its wireless network for Super Bowl XLIII
The
company is focusing on four key areas: the stadium/Tampa International
Airport, downtown hotels and the convention center area, the hotels
where the teams will be staying and the University of South Florida Sun
Dome and team practice fields.
At the stadium,
AT&T Mobility is increasing 2G (GSM/Global System for Mobile
Communications) voice and data capacity by 400 percent and high-speed
3G (UMTS/Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) voice and data
capacity by nearly 335 percent.
In addition to the two existing cell
sites AT&T Mobility has inside the stadium, the company is setting
up two mobile cell on wheels, or "COWs", at the southeast and northeast
corners of the stadium parking lot. Additional capacity on cell sites
in the areas of the airport, downtown, the team hotels and USF will
handle increased traffic in those parts of Tampa.
AT&T
Mobility's network personnel will be on site for game day to monitor
the network. Traffic on the stadium cell sites will be balanced as
needed during the game in order to maximize the ability for customers
to make calls and use data services, such as texting, multimedia
messaging and sharing live video of the big game with friends and
relatives back home.