AT&T to launch LTE service by mid-2011

AT&T Operations CEO John Stankey, speaking at the Bank of America Merrill Lynch 2010 Media, Communications & Entertainment Conference, said the carrier is working to get its LTE network ready to be launched. Trials are being conducted currently in Baltimore and Dallas with plans for a full scale launch in the middle of 2011 with coverage reaching 70 to 75 million POPS by the end of the year.

AT&T's roll out of LTE is a little different than the roadmap favored by Verizon. The former carrier will be carrying forward its UMTS service to make sure that voice and data can work simultaneously on both UMTS and LTE. This has led to a possible capital expenditure of as much as $700 million this year and more in 2011. Verizon's goal is to launch 25-30 LTE markets in Q4 of this year, covering 100 million POPS. 15 months after launch, Verizon plans on doubling the number of LTE markets served.

Stankey said that he is never satisfied with AT&T's network and the company continues to work on improvements. For example, he noted that on October 1st, the carrier will have 600 additional radio carriers in San Francisco, an area that has been a major troublespot for the mobile operator, along with New York City.

source: FierceWireless