AT&T (NYSE: T) has put a date and time to its anticipated entry into the 1 gigabit broadband race in Austin, Texas, stating that it will begin delivering high-speed broadband U-verse with GigaPower and more advanced TV services and features in December.
"Austin embodies innovation and social consciousness and is the heart of a vibrant ever-evolving tech culture and entrepreneurial spirit," Dave Nichols, president of AT&T Texas said in a company press release.
Austin also embodies one of several cities targeted by Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) Fiber for its own 1 gigabit broadband and TV service. In essence, one city will have two providers offering 1 Gbps service while most cities have none.
AT&T, Nichols continued, is leveraging a 100 percent fiber broadband network and its U-verse experience to bring a new range of services to the Texas capital.
"With our all-fiber U-verse services, we are building the foundation for a new wave of innovation for Austin's consumers, businesses and civic and educational institutions," he continued. "It's about engaging the full community and empowering the city and its people with all that technology can offer us."
Like Google, AT&T is asking customers to make known their interest in which neighborhoods will get GigaPower which, despite its name, will initially future symmetrical speeds up to 300 Mbps with 1 Gbps service coming on board in mid-2014.
The service will also include access to U-verse IPTV with "more HD streams to record and watch multiple shows simultaneously, plus greater DVR storage capacity," the carrier said in the press release.
AT&T said that Dahna Hull had been named to the new role of vice president and general manager, Austin, AT&T Services and would be responsible for the U-verse with GigaPower deployment.
For more:
- AT&T issued this press release
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