AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 22, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Austinites have a need for speed and data consumption, and that is helping drive stronger than expected demand for the fastest consumer broadband service delivered over the new AT&T network - AT&T U-verse® with GigaPower(SM). AT&T plans to expand the all-fiber network to reach twice as many Austin area households in 2014.

AT&T* today confirmed that sales of the ultra-fast broadband service have exceeded expectations. Already providing the fastest broadband service available to consumers in Austin at up to 300 megabits per second, AT&T plans to increase speeds to up to 1 gigabit per second later this year.

"Austin's response to our blazing fast broadband and enhanced TV services has been incredible and validates why we decided to roll this out in Austin first," said Dahna Hull, vice president and general manager, Austin, AT&T Services Inc. "Austinites consume data at rates 15 percent to 20 percent higher than the average U-verse user, and the overwhelming adoption of our new U-verse High Speed Internet 300 broadband service confirms that this community also values time and speed."

With upstream and downstream speeds of up to 300 Mbps and a more advanced HD TV experience, AT&T U-verse with GigaPower is now available to tens of thousands of customer locations in Austin and surrounding communities, including parts of Bastrop, Cedar Park, Dripping Springs, Jollyville, Lakeway, Leander, Pflugerville, and Round Rock. Within the city, the services are available in neighborhoods like Bryker Woods, Cherrywood, French Place, Mueller, Old Enfield, and Tarrytown.

Planned expansions in 2014 include areas of Zilker, Homestead, and North Lamar, among many other neighborhoods throughout the city.

AT&T has encouraged residents to vote for service at www.att.com/gigapower to help influence future expansions. With thousands of votes already cast, and new votes recorded daily, AT&T plans to more than double the fiber network reach in Austin in 2014, with expansions planned within the city and in some surrounding communities.

"We asked residents to tell us where they wanted this service and they are responding by the thousands with their votes," said Hull. "We couldn't be more excited and grateful about the response or more eager to get U-verse with GigaPower in the hands and homes of even more consumers. We encourage people who haven't voted to get online and get counted."

AT&T launched U-verse with GigaPower in Austin in December. With the network, customers also have access to cutting-edge TV services that offer the ability to watch and record more shows simultaneously with our largest storage capacity DVR.

Customers who sign-up for U-verse High Speed Internet 300 service will be upgraded later this year to speeds up to 1 Gigabit per second when available, and at no extra cost.



    How fast is 300             How fast is 1
     megabits?**                Gigabit?**
    ---------------             -------------

    --    Download 7 songs in   Download 25 songs
         one second            in one second

    --    Download your         Download your
         favorite TV show      favorite TV show
         in under 9 seconds    in less than 3
                               seconds

    --    Download an online    Download an HD
         HD move in under 2    online movie in
         minutes               less than 36
                               seconds
    --   -------------------  ---------------

AT&T began serving Austin more than 134 years ago and today has a base of 2,600 active employees and close to 1,000 retirees in Austin, 63 AT&T retails stores in and around the city, an award winning wireless network, and is responsible for thousands of volunteer hours dedicated to community outreach activities in the greater Austin area each year.

For more information about AT&T U-verse with GigaPower, to determine availability, or to vote for expansion to your neighborhood, please visit www.att.com/gigapower.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.
** Speeds may vary and are not guaranteed. Actual speeds vary based on internet factors including site traffic, content provider server capacity, device capabilities and use of other U-verse services.

About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) is a premier communications holding company and one of the most honored companies in the world. Its subsidiaries and affiliates - AT&T operating companies - are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and internationally. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation's most reliable 4G LTE network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet, voice and cloud-based services. A leader in mobile Internet, AT&T also offers the best wireless coverage worldwide of any U.S. carrier, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV service with the AT&T U-verse(®) brand. The company's suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world.

Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at http://www.att.com/aboutus or follow our news on Twitter at @ATT, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/att and YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/att.

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Reliability claim based on data transfer completion rates on nationwide 4G LTE networks. 4G LTE availability varies.

SOURCE AT&T Inc.