AT&T's DAS group aims to improve customer experience

DALLAS—AT&T Mobility (T) formed its Antenna Solutions Group to focus on improving AT&T customers’ experience by enhancing the network from the inside out, said Jim Parker, senior manager of the unit within AT&T. In that way, AT&T’s Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) business is different from some of its independent tower company competitors because it is focusing on the user experience, not as a way to generate revenue.
Wireless operators and independent tower companies have a history of cooperation and competition. In the early days of wireless buildouts, carriers tended to own their own towers, but later most operators used a combination of their own towers and towers leased from independent firms, especially as carriers warmed to the idea of collocating on towers with their competitors.. Some carriers, like Sprint Nextel Corp. (S) and Leap Wireless International Inc. (LEAP), have chosen to sell their towers to focus on consumer-facing efforts. Other operators, including AT&T and T-Mobile USA Inc. (DTEGY), have operated their tower business as separate units within the company. As such, AT&T’s foray into the DAS business is no surprise.
The antenna group works closely with the network planning and engineering team at AT&T to build the network from the inside out, focusing on high-density areas like airports, shopping centers, colleges, stadiums and the like, Parker said. The carrier has experienced an 8,000% increase in data traffic on its networks since 2007, as smartphone adoption rapidly increased when Apple Inc.’s iPhone was first introduced. Today, people are using advanced devices to create content, sending texts and uploading video and photographs to send to their friends and family while they are at public events, Parker said, creating the need for more DAS networks to carry traffic.
AT&T prefers to be the neutral-host service provider, adding its competitors on the network once it is built. If there is an existing system in place, AT&T is willing to join that network if it meets AT&T’s requirements. However, Parker noted that since LTE and mobile WiMAX use MIMO technology, sometimes the company has to “rip and replace” an old in-building system with newer technology. Once the Antenna Solutions Group has built the system, AT&T’s tower group operates it.
Even as newer technologies like LTE can support increased data usage, operators have to be open to new solutions like picocells, femtocells, DAS networks and macro cellular towers to keep up with increased data consumption, Parker said.