Verizon Wireless Expands Its 4G LTE Network East and Southeast of Des Moines, Iowa on April 19

DES MOINES, Iowa, April 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- On April 19, Verizon Wireless customers in more areas east and southeast of Des Moines can take advantage of the Verizon Wireless 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) network, the nation's largest 4G LTE network.  Cities and towns in the expanded 4G coverage area include:

• East of Mitchellville on Interstate 80 to exit 191 (including Colfax, Newton, Grinnell, and Montezuma);
• Southeast of Polk County on State Highway 163 to Pella (including Prairie City and Monroe);
• East of Warren County on State Highway 92 in Marion County to the Mahaska county line (including Knoxville).

With the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network, customers can enjoy the best experience in wireless data usage when they stream video, share music and photos, download files and surf the Web with speeds up to 10 times faster than before.  Verizon Wireless initially launched its 4G LTE network Nov. 17, 2011  in Des Moines with coverage extending north on Interstate 35 to the Story County border (including Ankeny, Grimes, Perry and Polk City), south on I-35 to New Virginia and west on Interstate 80 to Dexter (including Clive, Urbandale, Waukee and West Des Moines).

In addition to expanding the network in 44 markets, including the greater Des Moines area on April 19, the company is introducing the network in 27 new markets across the United States.  With the new and expanded markets on April 19, the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network will be available to more than two-thirds of the U.S. population in a total of 230 markets. 

"The expansion of our 4G LTE network east and southeast of Des Moines reinforces our commitment to leading the way in 4G LTE and providing our customers the best products and services available," said Seamus Hyland, president–Great Plains Region, Verizon Wireless. "With the expanded 4G LTE network, residents in more areas of central Iowa can continue pushing the boundaries of communication by taking advantage of the speed and connectivity offered by 4G LTE."

4G LTE Devices and Plans

Verizon Wireless customers can purchase a wide variety of the most popular 4G LTE devices that will connect to the nation's fastest 4G network.  Details on available devices can be found at www.verizonwireless.com/4GLTE and information on plans and pricing is available at www.verizonwireless.com/plans.

4G LTE Coverage and Speed

In real-world, fully loaded network environments, Verizon Wireless 4G LTE customers should experience average data rates of 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) on the downlink and 2 to 5 Mbps on the uplink. 

When customers travel outside of a 4G LTE coverage area, 4G LTE devices automatically connect to Verizon Wireless' 3G network, where available, enabling customers to stay connected from coast to coast.  Verizon Wireless' 3G network is the most reliable high-speed data network in the country and allows customers in 3G coverage areas who purchase 4G LTE devices today to take advantage of 4G LTE speeds when the faster network becomes available in their area, or when they travel to areas already covered by 4G LTE (including the Iowa markets of Council Bluffs, Sioux City, Cedar Rapids, Iowa City and the Quad Cities area).

For more information about Verizon Wireless' 4G LTE network, visit www.verizonwireless.com/lte.  Coverage maps will be available online for the greater Des Moines area on April 19.          

For Verizon Wireless Updates on Twitter 

Stay in the know about Verizon Wireless news in Iowa by following @VZWKaren on Twitter at http://twitter.com/vzwkaren. For all the latest news, information and upgrades, follow @VZWnews on Twitter at http://twitter.com/VZWnews.

About Verizon Wireless

Verizon Wireless operates the nation's largest 4G LTE network and largest, most reliable 3G network. The company serves nearly 108 million total wireless connections, including 92.2 million retail customers.  Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with nearly 82,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE, NASDAQ: VZ) and Vodafone (LSE, NASDAQ: VOD).  For more information, visit www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.

SOURCE Verizon Wireless