AT&T In 2013 Has Created More Than 125 Jobs In Greensboro, Building On Nearly $140 Million Invested In Area From 2010 Through 2012

GREENSBORO, N.C., March 26, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- AT&T* in 2013 has created and filled more than 125 jobs in its Greensboro call centers to keep up with growing demand for wireless services. The new jobs follow AT&T's investment of nearly $140 million in its Greensboro area wireless and wireline networks from 2010 through 2012, with a focus on expanding 4G LTE mobile Internet coverage and enhancing the overall performance of its networks.**

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The new jobs are Business Customer Service Specialist positions located at AT&T wireless call centers at 2002 Pisgah Church Road and 3709 Wireless Drive in Greensboro.

"In today's economic climate, any new jobs are good, but information-economy positions with good benefits are especially welcome," Greensboro Mayor Robbie Perkins said. "City council works hard to ensure that when AT&T, or any company, considers where to locate or expand operations, they understand that North Carolina is a state committed to growth and job creation. Announcements like these are the key to getting the economy moving forward again."

Across North Carolina from 2010 through 2012, AT&T invested more than $1.5 billion in its wireless and wireline networks.

"We appreciate Mayor Perkins' strong leadership to encourage investment and drive economic growth," said Dan Lynch, President of the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance. "The city council's understanding of what businesses need to succeed in today's fast-moving global economy pays tremendous dividends across the community and keeps us competitive with other regions in the race for new jobs."  

People in the Greensboro area increasingly depend on mobile Internet connections for communication, entertainment and productivity at work, at home and everywhere in between. AT&T's continued investment is designed to deliver the highest levels of service, with network enhancements driving improvements in key areas of the mobile Internet experience: 4G speed, broad coverage and network reliability.

"At AT&T, we are committed to providing outstanding service to our customers and to helping North Carolina grow," said Jim Tarman, Regional Director for External Affairs. "That's why we invested nearly $140 million in our Greensboro networks from 2010 through 2012, and why we are bringing these jobs to the Triad. But that wouldn't be possible without the ongoing efforts of North Carolina leaders to create and sustain a public policy environment which encourages business and welcomes the commitment of private capital."

AT&T's significant investment over the past three years is delivering customers a stronger network performance:

• The AT&T network kept 99 percent of all Greensboro-area wireless calls connected in the fourth quarter of 2012 (October through December)

"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 Laurent Therivel, AT&T vice president general manager in the Carolinas. "While third-party and internal testing shows that these investments are paying off with excellent service for Greensboro customers, we are continually planning and deploying network enhancements to improve service."

2012 Network Enhancements Deliver Faster Speeds, Broader Coverage to Customers

AT&T customers are benefitting from more than 150 wireless upgrades made in six key categories during 2012 in the Greensboro area, 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, and adding or upgrading Distributed Antenna Systems, which boost wireless coverage and capacity in buildings and at major venues like convention halls or sports arenas.

AT&T launched 4G LTE in Greensboro in July 2012. AT&T 4G LTE is the latest generation of wireless network technology and provides faster mobile Internet speeds and improved performance on a variety of mobile smartphones and tablets. 

The AT&T 4G LTE network has been nationally recognized for its speed and coverage. AT&T 4G LTE delivered faster average download speeds than any of the competitors in PCWorld's most recent 13-market speed tests, and telecommunications industry analyst firm Frost and Sullivan awarded AT&T its North American Mobile Network Strategy Award for the second year in a row in 2012.

Planned Investment to Expand Reach of Wireless and Wired Broadband

AT&T recently launched Project Velocity IP (VIP), a three-year investment initiative to expand and enhance its wireless and wired IP broadband networks. As part of Project VIP, AT&T plans to increase the density of its wireless network by deploying more than 10,000 macro sites, more than 1,000 distributed antenna systems, and more than 40,000 small cells. Through this initiative, we also plan to:

• Expand 4G LTE to cover more than 300 million people by year-end 2014
• Expand the AT&T wired IP broadband network to cover approximately 75 percent of customer locations in our wired service area by year-end 2015
• Expand the AT&T fiber network to reach 1 million additional business locations by year-end 2015

For more information about AT&T's coverage in Greensboro or anywhere in the U.S., consumers can visit the AT&T Coverage Viewer. Using the online tool, AT&T customers can measure quality of coverage from a street address, intersection, ZIP code or even a landmark. 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 4G LTE availability in select markets. 4G speeds not available everywhere. LTE is a trademark of ETSI. Compatible device and data plan required. Up to 10x claim compares 4G LTE download speeds to industry average 3G download speeds. Learn more at att.com/network. 

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 largest 4G 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 services under the AT&T U-verse^® and AT&T │DIRECTV brands. The company's suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world.

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 www.att.com/rss. Or follow our news on Twitter at @ATT.

© 2013 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. Mobile broadband not available in all areas. 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 press release contains financial estimates and other forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results might 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 and revise statements contained in this news release based on new information or otherwise.

SOURCE AT&T Inc.