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Super Cellular Battle II: AT&T, T-Mobile Beef Up Indy Coverage; But What About Twitter?

January 24, 2012 by

If your call, text or tweet doesn’t get through from the Super Bowl in Indianapolis, you probably won’t be able to blame the phone companies. Today AT&T and T-Mobile joined Verizon Wireless and Sprint in announcing special plans to increase wireless capacity for the Feb. 5 showdown between New England and New York, which is expected to attract enough folks to completely fill the 70,000-seat Lucas Oil Stadium.

From the info provided so far it looks like AT&T has done the most in terms of bringing wireless resources to the Indy table: According to the press release AT&T is not only expanding the DAS antenna coverage inside the arena, it is also firing up a public Wi-Fi hot zone in the adjacent neighborhood, while also adding some outside DAS deployments as well as driving nine COWs (cell towers on wheels) in for the party. Indy is also one of the select cities where AT&T has launched its new 4G LTE network, so it’s a good guess that the infrastructure there is new and ready to rock. Safe to say, AT&T probably isn’t going to experience a SXSW style cellular fail at the Super Bowl this year.

T-Mobile, the nation’s fourth largest wireless provider, had sort of a me-too feel to its announcement but things like free charging stations (at the T-Mobile store that is near the stadium) and a T-Mobile sponsored relaxation zone with couches and hot beverages might come in handy if you are in the area. T-Mobile says it has also beefed up backhaul inside the stadium and throughout Indianapolis in general, so if you are a T-Mobile customer you should be OK come game day.

Still unanswered is the question of whether or not popular Internet sites like Twitter are making similar infrastructure preparations for the expected surge in traffic. We still haven’t seen any explanation or mea culpas from Twitter in regards to Sunday’s multiple fail whale appearances, other than a small status report that says everything got fixed. As Jim Rome says, better head to Fry’s, guys, and beef up that server farm.

Awesome day for the NFL, terrible day for Twitter. Better hit up Fry’s for a server or two before the Super Bowl.

January 22, 2012 10:24 pm via webReplyRetweetFavorite
@jimrome

Jim Rome

Filed Under: 4G LTE, AT&T, NFL, Sprint, Super Bowl, T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Super Cellular Battle: Verizon Adds DAS, Sprint Calls on the COWs

January 18, 2012 by

Portable cellular tower on light truck -- aka a "COLT." Credit: Verizon Wireless

In addition to the football game, there’s a cellular supremacy battle going on in advance of the NFL’s Super Bowl on Feb. 5, as wireless providers are bringing in extra technology to make sure all their customers’ calls go through on the big day in Indianapolis.

The cellular conundrum facing sporting events is old hat to readers of Mobile Sports Report, who know about the bandwidth challenges when 70,000 of your closest friends show up on Sunday and all try to post to Facebook at the same time. For the Super Bowl in Indy’s Lucas Oil Stadium Verizon Wireless has the inside lead, by installing a Distributed Antenna System (DAS), basically a bunch of small cellular antennas hung inside the building to provide better reception. AT&T put a DAS in the Superdome ahead of the BCS championship, and has put DAS installs in other stadiums like Cowboys Stadium in Dallas.

There’s an excellent walk-through with geek-heavy pictures about the Verizon updates in this post by theGadgets blog, which apparently is local to the Hoosier locale. Verizon is also installing public Wi-Fi networks inside both the stadium and the nearby convention center, and will improve outside coverage by bringing in COWs, aka Cell towers On Wheels — mobile antennas that beef up coverage. Verizon notes that Indianapolis is one of its 4G LTE coverage areas, so customers with access to Verizon’s newer faster network will have 4G access at the game, all the better to watch the mobile stream of the Super Bowl via the NFL Mobile app, only available from Verizon.

Also calling in the COWs is competitor Sprint Nextel, which according to a press release out today will drive in two COWs for the stadium, two at the Super Bowl village and one more at the University of Indianapolis (the NFC practice facility). Sprint also says it has “added capacity to 21 CDMA [3G wireless] sites and seven iDEN [push to talk] sites around downtown and surrounding area hotels, including a major capacity upgrade inside the stadium.”

We are still waiting for an official AT&T response but you can bet Ma Bell will also be beefing up its cellular arsenal in advance of the Feb. 5 game day. All good news for connected fans who want to stay linked while they’re at the big game.

Filed Under: 4G LTE, AT&T, BCS, NFL, NFL Mobile, Sprint, Super Bowl, Verizon Wireless Tagged With: , , , ,

Red Sox Tap Meru for Fenway Wi-Fi Network

December 20, 2011 by

Wireless network gear provider Meru Networks has scored a big hit in the connected-stadium race by inking a deal with the Boston Red Sox to build out a Wi-Fi network inside of historic Fenway Park.

While Meru actually worked with the BoSox to install a prototype network before last baseball season, the new deal will officially tap the upstart gear vendor as the offical supplier of a full-bore Wi-Fi network designed to address the mobile broadband needs of the 37,000-plus fans who might file in on game days.

In a designed-for-an-IT-audience press release quote, the Red Sox’s IT director waxes poetically about Meru’s capabilities:

“The sheer number of devices trying to access the network was dizzying – and that number has continued to grow,” said Steve Conley, IT Director, Boston Red Sox. “Our old network simply wasn’t capable of handling the influx of devices or meeting the demand for high-performance connectivity. Meru brought stability, reliability and simplicity to our wireless infrastructure. We can now not only tune the network for optimal performance and avoid outages, we can also scale to meet network demands and reduce management costs.”

The connected-stadium marketplace is expected to heat up in 2012, with networking giant Cisco Systems already having established a separate business unit to focus on the opportunity. Investors previously thought highly of Meru’s chances to stake a claim in the wireless-access market, as the company was able to go public last year in an IPO that netted almost $66 million. However, the company’s stock price has declined since the offering, trading now in the $3-per-share range after hitting highs in the 20s.

Filed Under: Baseball, Wi-Fi Tagged With: ,

Mobile Sports Report TechWatch: Barnes & Noble Enhances Nook Color

December 12, 2011 by

OnLine’s new apps mean Tablets can be gaming consoles
Cloud gaming developer OnLive has developed a set of apps that bring console gaming to tablet and mobile (i.e smartphones) platforms. The company said that this will open up top ranked, high performance games that were once only available on consoles to a market that is at least 500 million strong.

The Universal OnLive Wireless Controller enable a player to use a Wi-Fi network to play a program that is stored in the cloud and streamed live to the tablet, phone, PC or Mac. A user must own the program and once purchased it can be used on any device.

OnLive currently has a stable of 25 games that have been adapted to work with touch screen devices including L.A. Noire, Batman: Arkham City, Assassin’s Creed: Revelations and Lord of the Rings: War in the North, and Defense Grid Gold. The Universal OnLive Wireless Controller uses technology that the company is expected to be available soon for a list price of $49.99.

Barnes & Noble enhances Nook software
Barnes & Noble has released a software upgrade for its Nook Color, a move that brings the low cost device closer in features and capabilities to its more expensive Nook Tablet as well as rivals from other developers.

Among the new found features is access to Barnes & Noble’s huge Marvel graphic novel collection via Nook Comic, streaming movies and TV shows via Netflix as well as the Flixster app for on-the-go access to digital streaming media.

In all the company said that it added 100 enhancements that ranged from increased font size to the ability to read books in either landscape or portrait mode. Head over to Cnet for a fuller listing of features as well as some issues with the product.

Microsoft to offer Open Source Apps for Windows 8
ExtreameTech has reported that the advocates for Open Source software have won an unexpected ally with the announcement that Microsoft will allow open source apps at its Windows 8 app store.

Microsoft has long been a foe of the open source movement, but entering the app space much later than rivals Apple and the Android lineup it needs a boost and it appears it is taking a chance that one of its rivals is willing to take.

While Apple prohibits open source apps for its iOS in its store Microsoft has stated that it will allow apps developed under a license from the Open Source Initiative and that the OSI license will trump the Microsoft Standard Application License Terms that have tough sharing provisions.

The lack of open source apps has not seemed to hurt Apple yet as it just reported that it just had its 100 millionth app downloaded from its Mac App Store.

The Patent wars heat up
Motorola won an important ruling in German courts last week that could shackle Apple and force the company to pay out royalties and make changes to its technology. The court ruled that Apple has failed to license one of Motorola Mobility’s patent technologies.

Motorola could seek an injunction preventing Apple from selling products that contain the technology in dispute, which basically means no iPhone or iPad sales in Germany if granted. Apple said that t will appeal the ruling.
If Motorola wishes to have a sales injunction enforced against Apple it will need to post a $133 million bond to cover costs in case Apple later prevails in court. Motorola has licensed the technology in question to others but wanted to charge Apple at a higher rate.

Looking for an Android to call your own?
Not exactly what Harrison Ford was in a search and destroy mode in “Blade Runner”, but not like any phone you have used before, a strange new communications technology is emerging from the Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International (ATR) .

Called the Elfoid P1, it is a prototype tele-operated android that will, in the future, mimic motion and appearance of that of the users, hopefully conveying a more human sense to phone conversations.

Sadly it is not a machine that you can send to work in your place but rather a pint sized device that stands in as a phone and resembles, well here is a photo you can decide for yourself what it resembles. Not sure I would want to whip one of these out of my pocket at a business meeting to update my calendar.

CES
If you have an interesting product or app showing at next month’s Consumer Electronics Show that you think we might be interested in drop us a line.

Filed Under: Amazon, Android, Apps, iPad, iPhone, Live sports via mobile, Motorola, OnLive, Tablets, Wi-Fi Video Streaming Tagged With: , , , , ,

Cisco Scoring Big in Europe with Stadium Wi-Fi, Infrastructure Deals

December 1, 2011 by

Warsaw's new National Stadium, soon to be powered with Cisco networking technology.


With a couple new deals for stadium-network infrastructure, U.S. networking giant Cisco Systems is at the start of what could be a big string of wins for its new focus on “connected stadiums.”

A Nov. 15 announcement of plans for soccer powerhouse Real Madrid to partner with Cisco to bring fan-accessible Wi-Fi and other improvements to its home stadium in Madrid was followed by an announcement on Nov. 21 of a deal for Cisco to bring a wide range of technology to the new National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland, where next year’s Euro 2012 soccer tourney will kick off.

Cisco Sports and Entertainment Solutions Group SVP and GM David Holland

Though Cisco is no stranger to sports stadium deals — it helped AT&T build wireless networks inside stadiums like AT&T Park in San Francisco and Stanford Stadium, and is behind wireless efforts at facilities like Kansas City’s Livestrong Park soccer arena — the next year should see Cisco kick into full gear on its “connected sports solutions” group, headed by senior VP and GM David Holland. While free Wi-Fi is of top interest to most fans these days, Cisco’s breadth of networking smarts brings even more to the table for venue owners — including the ability to integrate voice, public safety and other data streams like ticketing and concessions into a tight, secure, single IT infrastructure.

For fans, the benefits of a connected stadium are clear: Personal access to instant video replays, the ability to order food from your seat, and the fun of connecting with fans and friends either in the venue or out on the Internet. For teams and stadium owners, a fully connected stadium not only helps make fans happier, it can also increase advertising and other revenue streams while reducing administration and cost of IT ownership.

Where Cisco has an edge over other technology providers is in its depth of offerings — not only is it the world leader in back-end routing and switching gear, but it is also among the market leaders in wireless access gear, through the expertise of its Linksys division. Unknown to most observers is Cisco’s strength in digital-display technology, which it uses in stadium situations to improve or enhance video display on screens both big and small.

Sports is something Cisco understands

And unlike other consumer-based offerings — such as its failed efforts to crack into the personal video market by buying handheld videocam maker Flip — Cisco clearly “gets” the sports fan’s desire to have better access to technology. Just read this snippet from a Cisco blog about stadium technology, which reads like something we might write here at MSR:

Picture a fan sitting in a football stadium full of tens of thousands of people getting ready for the game to begin. The stadium is roaring with noise, the team takes the pitch, and the fan uses his or her mobile device to snap a picture, capturing an iconic moment.

Like most football fans, and sports fans in general, he or she is a vibrant digital and social media consumer, and therefore tries to share that photo via a social media channel like Facebook.

However, with so many fans in the stadium desiring to do that same thing, or engage with their mobile device in another way, the strain on the existing mobile network at the game is intense. The fan finds the device has a low level of or no connectivity, and is unable to share that moment with friends, family and other fans…an inability to interact – something this fan and scores of others desire.

And going to Europe makes plenty of sense for a global powerhouse like Cisco, mainly because of the more-advanced cellular culture there. In some research we are conducting now at MSR we are finding out that most big stadiums in this country have little or no Wi-Fi access — except maybe in the luxury suites. In Europe the revolution toward fully wired fans is already in full swing, and Cisco is smart to get out in front early. It will be interesting to see how quickly these stadium deals contribute to the networking giant’s bottom line.

Filed Under: AT&T, Cisco, Facebook, Live sports via mobile, Live Sports Video Consumption, Wi-Fi Tagged With: , , , ,

Early Verdict: NFL Mobile Rocks

November 20, 2011 by

We finally upgraded our Verizon-based handset here at MSR headquarters this weekend, and just in time to catch some of the Sunday night game via the NFL Mobile app. For the record we have the Samsung Stratosphere, not the latest or greatest Android phone but one with a slide-out keyboard which is a necessity for me.

With the MSR grade-school contingent in the household busy watching the Aristocats on DVD, we dialed in the Stratosphere with the sound muted down and checked out NFL Mobile, and was supremely impressed. Not only did it show the Sunday night Eagles-Giants game in pretty good definition it didn’t stutter or pixelate — and we were able to use the home Wi-Fi so that the data didn’t count against our cellular plan.

After trying out several other options earlier this year, like the ESPN GameCast text play by play and the NFL.com highlights/text option it is clear that if you are an NFL fan and are at a decision point on your cellular provider it’s hard to pick anyone else but Verizon. Earlier today we watched the NFL RedZone on the phone and it was again impressive — and only about 30 seconds behind the live RedZone broadcast on cable. So it’s a perfect couch companion, letting you watch your game of choice on the big tube while keeping RedZone open on the phone to let you know if and when you need to flip channels.

We will reserve a final judgement until we have to use NFL Mobile on the cellular network and then see how much data live watching chews through. But for now mark us as a happy NFL fan who has a great new tool for mobile viewing, that being Verizon Wireless’s NFL Mobile app.

Filed Under: 4G LTE, Live sports via mobile, Live Sports Video Consumption, NFL, Verizon Wireless Tagged With: , , , ,
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