Verizon Wireless Enhances Network In Savannah For St. Patrick's Day Festivities

SAVANNAH, GA. — To ensure its customers have flawless wireless service during the 188th St. Patrick’s Day parade and festivities in Savannah, Ga., Verizon Wireless has increased its network capacity by 75 percent and has deployed a Cell On Wheels (COW) to provide enhanced capacity and coverage around downtown. Customers attending the parade also will be able to enjoy Verizon’s blazing fast 4G LTE network, which launched in Savannah this past November.

Network Preparedness

In recent years, data usage and text messages have dramatically increased during the parade. The company’s data traffic around the parade route has increased approximately 600 percent over the past two years. Typical parade SMS (Short Message Service) traffic is more than 210 percent higher than Verizon’s current busy hour. For this year’s event, Verizon is anticipating more than 150,000 text messages per hour.

This year for the first time, parade attendees with 4G LTE devices will be able to take advantage of the nation’s largest 4G LTE network with speeds up to 10 times faster than those experienced with a 3G device. Since its launch on Dec. 2010, Verizon Wireless’ 4G LTE network has won numerous technology and consumer choice awards. 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.

“We’re extremely excited to join the Savannah community and guests from all over the world who have traveled to take part in these historic festivities,” says Jonathan LeCompte, president, Verizon Wireless Georgia/Alabama Region. “At Verizon Wireless, our network’s performance is a top priority and, to ensure that our customers have optimal coverage during this year’s festivities, our network team has been working diligently to increase capacity for our 3G and 4G LTE networks around the parade route to meet the influx in demand.”

Parade Day Activities

For the sixth consecutive year, Verizon Wireless is the presenting sponsor of the renowned St. Patrick’s Celebration on the River event, which features entertainment, food, beverages, games, contests and more on the historic Savannah waterfront. As part of the festivities, the company will host an interactive area for visitors to demo the latest wireless devices and accessories including the new DROID RAZR™ MAXX™ and DROID 4, Motorola XYBOARD Tablets as well as the hottest must-have applications. There also will be a big screen on River Street, photo opportunities and several contest and prizes. If attending, don’t forget your dancing shoes as Verizon will be hosting a Leprechaun Dance-Off at 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Contestants will dress up in Verizon provided leprechaun costumes, and the best dancers in each competition will win a prize.

In addition, the Verizon Street Team will be on hand to answer questions, demo the latest Verizon technology and hand out free Verizon merchandise.

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.

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