Verizon continues to upgrade Madison’s best network

Verizon has recently made major upgrades to the network serving customers in Madison, WI. These upgrades are part of a multi-year redesign of its network architecture to stay ahead of exponential data usage increases, upgrade the technology in the network, and to pave the way for personalized customer experiences. Network upgrades in Madison include deploying new cell sites to extend coverage and capacity in local communities. They also include adding more capacity on fiber optic cables to move more data through the network and adding bandwidth to the cellular network to accommodate new services like wireless internet service for homes and businesses. Specifics on the upgrades include:

Verizon engineers have been aggressively deploying 5G Ultra Wideband throughout Madison That coverage has been expanded recently with the addition of a new macro cell site southwest of Sun Prairie near the intersection of US 151 and South Grand Avenue, enhancing coverage of the surrounding commercial area for dining, shopping and entertainment.

Engineers have deployed 21 additional small cell sites which provide service using Verizon’s Millimeter Wave (mmWave) spectrum, its premium, high-band spectrum which allows for extremely fast speeds and massive capacity. This brings the total of small cell sites to over 80, primarily south of the University of Wisconsin campus throughout the eastern portion of the isthmus.

Madison’s 5G coverage uses a combination of mmWave spectrum and Verizon’s recently acquired C-band spectrum. Until this year in Madison, Verizon has been using up to 100 MHz of the spectrum they secured, but by the end of this year, customers in Madison will be able to take advantage of even more C-band spectrum. That additional bandwidth will turbo charge the service, offering significantly higher speeds, much greater capacity to accommodate more customers and more robust services.

Lastly, the addition of 5G service and the many additional wireless solutions allow far more data to travel on the wireless network in Madison. That exponential increase in data carried into and out of the cell sites serving the community requires upgraded fiber optic cable links. Fiber optic cables are used to move data between cell sites and connect those sites to the rest of the network. Verizon has increased the capacity on the fiber connections in many cell sites in the Madison area so they can carry 10 times the amount of data.

“Today’s world calls for faster speeds, ultra secure connections and improved coverage in more places. We’re dedicated to bringing the best and latest technologies to local communities, and to keeping our customers connected through 5G,” said Dean Brauer, Vice President of Engineering and Operations for Verizon.

With these and other technology advancements on Verizon’s network, customers are able to use more data in more ways. This multi-service network powers

• Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices that do very little networking and stay in place,
• smartphones with infinite opportunities to use data in a highly mobile environment,
• home and business internet which provides connectivity via the wireless network for homes, offices and retail environments, and
• complex solutions like Augmented Reality or enterprise real-time video and data analysis that require massive computing capabilities.

As 5G technology advances and is even more widely adopted by consumers the variety of solutions that will use Verizon’s network will continue to evolve as well.

Madison, WI customers have the best experience on Verizon’s network
The recent network upgrades have led to customers and visitors to Madison, WI having the best experience when using the Verizon network, according to the nation’s most rigorous scientific testing company RootMetrics®. In the most recent test measuring performance of major wireless carriers throughout Madison, Verizon wins for overall network performance, and in fact is unbeaten in every single category tested including accessibility, reliability, speed and performance in texts and calls. Today’s results show great speeds for Verizon customers in Madison with Verizon’s median download speed increasing 94% and median upload speeds increasing by 35% since last year* in the market. Testing showed peak speeds of up to 398 Mbps.

Services from the network customers rely on
For customers in Madison, the additional coverage and capacity means more customers now have access not only to reliable, fast mobile service, but also Verizon Home Internet service, a different kind of home internet with no data caps. It’s ideal for anyone who wants super fast connectivity to stream, game or even work remotely. Verizon Home Internet is reliable and fast enough to power home connected devices: smart TVs, tablets, phones, gaming consoles and more. Plans start at just $25 per month with AutoPay and a select 5G mobile plan – all without extra fees, equipment charges, annual contracts or data caps.** Go to verizon.com/home for availability. Visit verizon.com/deals for the latest 5G phones and accessories.

CT Bureau