Verizon continues to upgrade Philadelphia's best network

PHILADELPHIA, May 17, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Verizon has recently made major upgrades to the network serving customers in the Philadelphia metro area. These upgrades are part of a multi-year redesign of its network architecture to stay ahead of exponential data usage increases, upgrade the technology in the network, and to pave the way for personalized customer experiences. Network upgrades in Philadelphia include deploying new cell sites to extend coverage and capacity in local communities. They also include adding more capacity on fiber optic cables to move more data through the network and adding bandwidth to the cellular network to accommodate new services like wireless internet service for homes and businesses. Specifics on the upgrades include:

• Engineers have deployed 5G Ultra Wideband service using Millimeter Wave (mmWave), its premium, high-band spectrum which allows for extremely fast speeds and massive capacity as well as C-band spectrum designed for high capacity and wide coverage. 5G Ultra Wideband service now covers 78% of the population in Philadelphia and has recently been expanded to areas in Brewerytown, South Philadelphia, Graduate Hospital, Hunting Park, Manayunk, Northern Liberties, Queen Village, Rittenhouse Square and Mann Music Center in Fairmount Park. Additionally, new cell sites are providing service in the following areas:
  • Near the busy Bustleton Pike in Feasterville, PA in Bucks County.
  • In Burlington County, NJ, covering Route 206, Columbus Farmers Market, and the Burlington County Fairgrounds as well as Tabernacle Road, Shawnee High School, and the nearby residential area.
  • In Camden County, covering the residential area in Waterford Twp & the ATCO Dragway as well as I-676 in Camden.
  • The historic downtown West Chester, PA area with their many shops, restaurants, and cultural events.
  • In Chester County near Routes 82 & 322.
  • In the center of Media, PA, providing service for the residents, the courthouse, shops, restaurants, churches, and landmarks that date back to the 1800s.
  • In Montgomery County, PA,
    • In Upper Dublin Twp., covering I-276 and a nearby business park.
    • For the Horsham Twp. Community Center and Route 463.
    • The police and fire departments have additional coverage in Lafayette Hill near Germantown Pike, the main thoroughfare. The local businesses and residents also benefit from the addition of the macro.
    • Abington Township's Senior High School, Middle School, and the residents nearby.
  • Near Overbrook High School and US 30 (Lancaster Avenue, one of the region's most critical transportation corridors), as well as part of the Septa rail line in West Philadelphia.
• Philadelphia’s exceptional 5G coverage uses a combination of mmWave spectrum and Verizon’s recently acquired C-band spectrum. Verizon engineers have been using 60 MHz of C-band spectrum to deliver 5G service to customers. By the end of the year, customers in Philadelphia will be able to take advantage of even more spectrum as it becomes available for 5G Ultra Wideband. That additional bandwidth will turbo charge the service, offering significantly higher speeds, much greater capacity to accommodate more customers and more robust services.
• Even as engineers provide wireless service in more places, they are also enhancing the service by deploying leading edge, modernized technology in the area. Engineers have upgraded the hardware in many of the cell sites providing service throughout Philadelphia adding capacity for more data to be used by customers, providing power efficiency, and providing virtualization. This technology milestone allows Verizon to rapidly respond to customers’ varied latency and computing needs, and provides greater flexibility and agility in the introduction of new products and services. The move to a cloud-based, virtualized architecture with standardized interfaces in every part of the network leads to greater flexibility, faster delivery of services, greater scalability, and improved cost efficiency in networks.
• Lastly, the addition of 5G service and the many additional wireless solutions allow far more data to travel on the wireless network in Philadelphia. That exponential increase in data carried into and out of the cell sites serving the community requires upgraded fiber optic cable links. Fiber optic cables are used to move data between cell sites and connect those sites to the rest of the network. Verizon has increased the capacity on the fiber connections in many cell sites in the Philadelphia area so they can carry 10 times the amount of data. 
  

“Whether our customers are enjoying connecting with friends and family while on the move, connecting their smart homes through one of our home internet products or using our service in Philadelphia for small business or enterprise applications, we know customers count on us,” said Julie Slattery, Vice President of Engineering and Operations for Verizon. “Our team has been working hard in Philadelphia to deliver these results, and we are not slowing down.”

With these and other technology advancements on Verizon’s network, customers are able to use more data in more ways. This multi-service network powers:

• Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices that do very little networking and stay in place,
• smartphones with infinite opportunities to use data in a highly mobile environment,
• home and business internet which provides connectivity via the wireless network for homes, offices and retail environments, and
• complex solutions like Augmented Reality or enterprise real-time video and data analysis that require massive computing capabilities. 

As 5G technology advances and is even more widely adopted by consumers the variety of solutions that will use Verizon’s network will continue to evolve as well.

Philadelphia, PA customers have the best experience on Verizon’s network

The recent network upgrades have led to customers having the best experience on the Verizon network in Philadelphia, PA according to the nation’s most rigorous scientific testing company RootMetrics®. In the most recent test measuring performance of major wireless carriers throughout Philadelphia, Verizon not only wins for overall network performance and reliability, but is also unbeaten in the categories of accessibility and performance of texts and calls. Today’s results show great speeds for Verizon customers in Philadelphia with Verizon’s median upload speed increasing a remarkable 107% and upload speeds increasing 48% since last year* in the market.

Services from the network customers rely on

For customers in Philadelphia, the additional coverage and capacity means more customers now have access not only to reliable, fast mobile service, but also Verizon Home Internet service, a different kind of home internet with no data caps. It’s ideal for anyone who wants super fast connectivity to stream, game or even work remotely. Verizon Home Internet is reliable and fast enough to power home connected devices: smart TVs, tablets, phones, gaming consoles and more. Plans start at just $25 per month with AutoPay and a select 5G mobile plan – all without extra fees, equipment charges, annual contracts or data caps.** Go to verizon.com/home for availability. Visit verizon.com/deals For the latest 5G phones and accessories.

Additionally, through Verizon Frontline, the advanced network and technology developed over three decades of partnership with first responders to meet their unique and evolving needs, public safety agencies in the Philadelphia area will also be able to experience the benefits of these network enhancements. To learn more about Verizon Frontline, visit verizon.com/frontline.

Philadelphia area businesses have access to 5G Business Internet from Verizon. 5G Business Internet is ultra-fast wireless business internet powered by 5G Ultra Wideband. This wireless alternative to cable internet is for businesses of all sizes and includes self-setup or professional installation options, multiple pricing and service options, unlimited data, and a 10-year price guarantee (price guarantee excludes taxes and fees) for 5G Business Internet service. To learn more about Verizon 5G Business Internet, visit verizon.com/5gbusinessinternet and plug in an address to see what service is available.

^{*Rankings based on the RootMetrics® Philadelphia RootScore® Report: 1H 2023. Tested with best commercially available smartphones on three mobile networks across all available network types. Your experiences may vary. The RootMetrics award is not an endorsement of Verizon.}

^{**Verizon Home Internet includes 5G Home Internet and LTE Home Internet services, which are available in select areas. Save $25/mo. when combined with an existing 5G Do More, 5G Play More, 5G Get More or One Unlimited for iPhone plan. With Auto Pay and paper-free billing req’d. Add’l $10/mo. w/o Auto Pay. Subject to credit approval.}

MEDIA CONTACT:
Karen Schulz
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Source: Verizon Sourcing LLC

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