LOUISVILLE, Ky., May 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- There was more than one winner at Churchill Downs this weekend after 34 horses crossed the finish line at the Kentucky Oaks and Derby this past weekend. The collective 290,000 Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks attendees were able to easily share their most exciting Derby weekend moments on their mobile devices, thanks to a unique wireless network configuration called a Distributed Antenna System (DAS) installed throughout the facility by Mobilitie.
The neutral-host DAS, installed by Mobilitie, increased 4G LTE coverage on AT&T's network compared to last year, making it easier for customers to upload photos, share experiences via social media, and chat real-time with friends.
Results showed total data volume at the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby races on AT&T's in-venue wireless network at Churchill Downs at more than 5 Terabytes. That's equivalent to more than 15.3 million social media posts with photos. Data usage peaked from5pm-6pm EDT in the hour leading up to the post time of the Kentucky Derby, when more than 474 Gigabytes crossed AT&T's network, the most data used on an AT&T in-venue mobile network during a given event.
"We're committed to robust investments in our networks all across the Commonwealth, and our network enhancement at Churchill Downs is just one way that we're investing in the Louisville area," said Hood Harris, AT&T Kentucky President. "When our customers attend Churchill Downs to take in the sights and sounds of the races, and socialize, we want them to enjoy our robust network that delivers high-speed connectivity – whether they are making calls, checking email, downloading apps or surfing the Internet."
"Mobile connectivity is a critical component of any large-scale event today," said Christos Karmis, president of Mobilitie. "Churchill Downs hosts the highest-attended sporting event of the year with hundreds of thousands of visitors. Mobilitie's robust networks provide the needed wireless coverage and capacity to allow fans to share their special moments with family and friends in real-time."
The DAS system installed by Mobilitie for the 141st running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs is one of the largest in the country. With more than 271 antennas and over one million feet of fiber optic cable discretely installed throughout the venue, the event can handle the tens of thousands of racing fans who attend the running of Kentucky Oaks and the Kentucky Derby. Mobilitie's neutral host DAS also supports many other events that take place at the venue throughout the year.
About Mobilitie Mobilitie is the largest privately-held wireless infrastructure provider in the United States, helping people stay connected wherever they are. Mobilitie funds, installs, and operates indoor and outdoor neutral host DAS, Small Cell, and Wi-Fi networks, communication tower sites, as well as other infrastructure used by wireless carriers to enable high speed mobile communications. Mobilitie engineers wireless solutions at the largest and most complex venues across all major industries, including sports and entertainment, real estate, hospitality, education, healthcare, government, and transportation. The highest mobile data traffic ever recorded during an event was carried on a Mobilitie DAS network. Mobilitie also deployed and operates the world's largest Wi-Fi network. Our high density wireless infrastructure is designed to enable the richest and most interactive mobile experiences, including real-time video streaming, location based services, and other mobile applications. Mobilitie is headquartered in Newport Beach, California with regional offices across the United States. To learn more about our wireless coverage solutions, visit us at www.mobilitie.com.
About AT&TAT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) helps millions of people and businesses around the globe stay connected through leading wireless, high-speed Internet, voice and cloud-based services. We're helping people mobilize their worlds with state-of-the-art communications, entertainment services and amazing innovations like connected cars and devices for homes, offices and points in between. Our U.S. wireless network offers customers the nation's strongest LTE signal and the nation's most reliable 4G LTE network. We offer the best global wireless coverage. We're improving how our customers stay entertained and informed with AT&T U-verse® TV and High Speed Internet services. And businesses worldwide are serving their customers better with AT&T's mobility and highly secure cloud solutions. Additional information about AT&T products and services is available at http://about.att.com. Follow our news on Twitter at @ATT, on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/att and YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/att. © 2015 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. AT&T, the AT&T logo and all other marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated companies. All other marks contained herein are the property of their respective owners. Reliability and signal strength claims based on nationwide carriers' LTE. Signal strength claim based ONLY on avg. LTE signal strength. LTE not available everywhere. Global coverage claim based on offering voice and data roaming in more countries than any other U.S. based carrier, and offering the most wireless smartphones and tablets that work in the most countries.
About Churchill Downs RacetrackChurchill Downs, the world's most legendary racetrack, has conducted Thoroughbred racing and presented America's greatest race, the Kentucky Derby presented by Yum! Brands, continuously since 1875. Located in Louisville, the flagship racetrack of Churchill Downs Incorporated also operates Trackside at Churchill Downs, which offers year-round simulcast wagering at the historic track. Churchill Downs conducted the 141st running of the Kentucky Derby on May 2, 2015. The track has hosted the Breeders' Cup World Championships a record eight times. Information about Churchill Downs can be found on the Internet at www.churchilldowns.com.
