AT&T Pins 4G Label to Existing Network

AT&T flipped a switch and turned on its 4G wireless network. The switch, however, was in the company's marketing department.

By relabeling its existing 3G network, the country's second-largest wireless carrier joined the noisy fray over so-called fourth-generation wireless technology, which promises mobile Internet speeds so fast that huge files can be downloaded in minutes and streaming video can be watched without the interruptions of earlier-generation technologies. As recently as September, AT&T executives had referred to the company's current network, which runs on a technology it calls HSPA-plus, as 3G. But AT&T has subtly shifted its marketing message since then, now proclaiming "the nation's fastest mobile broadband network" instead of the fastest 3G network. The 4G network claim is already prominent on its corporate website and will be affixed to new phones being rolled out for its network this year. AT&T also said it will spend more aggressively to complete an even more advanced network technology called Long-Term Evolution by the end of 2013, a year ahead of its previous target. That acceleration, however, won't be felt until 2012.