AT&T to Provide Communications Services for Big Game Venues
High-Speed Fiberoptic Infrastructure to Benefit Houston Business Community
HOUSTON, January 20, 2004 - AT&T announced today the company is providing an extensive portfolio of data and voice communications services to support the venues surrounding professional football's championship game, scheduled for Feb. 1 at Houston's Reliant Stadium.
AT&T has constructed a direct high-speed fiber-optic link from its Houston switching center to the Hilton Americas-Houston, George R. Brown Convention Center and Reliant Stadium. After the game, this communications infrastructure will remain in place, ready to serve future major events booked into the Hilton Americas-Houston and the other Houston venues, as well as business customers.
AT&T will provide a full range of local, long-distance and data services for multiple game-related venues through its contract with Hilton Hotels, one of AT&T's large global clients. The Hilton Americas-Houston Hotel, which opened in December, is the game's official headquarters location. AT&T also will provide communications services from Reliant Stadium for CBS-TV.
A fully redundant, self-healing Synchronous Optical Network (SONET) ring will protect the high-speed fiber-optic link. AT&T also will provide around-the-clock proactive network management, to diagnose and address possible service issues or congestion before they become a problem.
AT&T's Internet Protocol (IP)-enabled network provides the security of direct connections without the need to construct a new point-to-point network to all locations. It saves money for customers, while also offering simplicity and ease of network management that is critical for special events.
By leveraging Hilton's existing nationwide AT&T contract, the various venues will receive highly favorable pricing for all services the company provides.
"Our relationship with AT&T opened the door to great opportunity for all involved," said David Villarrubia, general manager of Hilton Americas Houston. "Additionally, with AT&T's communications infrastructure in place, Houston gains a tremendous edge in attracting future world-class events."
About AT&T
For more than 125 years, AT&T (NYSE "T", www.att.com) has been known for unparalleled quality and reliability in communications. Backed by the research and development capabilities of AT&T Labs, the company is a global leader in local, long distance, Internet and transaction-based voice and data services.