Cingular Wireless LLC is poised to expand its 3G (third-generation) services in the U.S. as early as Nov. 1.
A Web site that appears to display an internal Cingular page reveals plans for the company to launch 3G services in Chicago,
Seattle, Las Vegas, Boston and Atlanta on Nov. 1.
Mark Siegel, executive director of media relations for Cingular Wireless, would not comment on the Web site but said the operator
is on track to deploy UMTS/HSDPA in 15 markets to 20 markets this year.
Cingular has already launched UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) in six markets and has publicly said it will
have UMTS and HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) markets deployed this year. HSDPA is the latest high-speed data upgrade
to GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications)-based cellular networks.
An internal company Web page Friday included coverage maps of many of the cities as well as a PowerPoint presentation with
details of Cingular's position compared to competitors. It's not immediately clear, however, which markets will get HSDPA
service and which may get the slower speed UMTS.
However, the internal site links to several versions of letters for customers in existing UMTS markets asking for their patience
while Cingular upgrades its network. The Web site was posted on the HowardForums.com discussion board and later linked to
by Engadget, the popular gadget blog.
Cingular advertises its UMTS network as offering 220K bps (bits per second) to 320K bps and publicly says that HSDPA will
boost that speed to 400K bps to 700K bps. In comparison, Verizon Wireless Inc. markets its EV-DO (Evolution-Data Only) network,
available in 60 markets, as offering 400K bps to 700K bps.
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