voice and data connections to improve in Death Valley

In 2011, to bring up the fact that communication has become the new center of commerce would be to state the obvious. It is almost an affront to the sensibilities at this late date to comment on the ever-present necessity to “be in touch.” However, we at Dexcomm came across a news item which drives this point home so well that we would be negligent not to mention it… especially since we really love college football.

It seems cell phone connectivity has been a problem at football games–as if we need to be told (ever try to connect to the tailgate via cell phone just before game time?). According to a report last year from C-Net, there are at least 5 billion cell phones currently in use around the world. With 6.5 billion people on planet Earth, that means that approximately 79% of the world population has a cell phone in their pocket. The implications are obvious for college football; when you have thousands of fans congregating around the stadium on game day, chances are a few people are trying to make a call. This has led to connectivity issues that have befuddled the major cell phone providers.

AT&T  has decided to take the bull by the horns at LSU’s Tiger Stadium (Death Valley for us natives). Starting this year, the phone service provider has decided to update all of their towers on LSU’s campus to 3G technology in order to accommodate the over-load of calls.

The point of this move is obviously to alleviate the pressure on systems located in hotspots. Yet it reminds us all of a point so obvious that we take it for granted: the need for people to stay connected is all-encompassing. In the grand scheme of things, whether or not we meet up with our friends at a football game is rather meaningless. However, if just one call of consequence fails to go through—perhaps that call which alerts a fan to a family emergency—then we have failed to communicate what matters. Whether or not communication has become the new “hot thing,” we can’t allow ourselves to become inured to the consequences of miscommunication. One dropped call can mean a lot.

You can actually figure out where your calls are likely to be dropped, regardless of who your cell provider is. This app will tell you where coverage is bad. What is more, you can compare how other providers measure up. Using it could help you get ahead of the game–or at least meet up with your friends before the game. This, of course, doesn’t necessarily account for towers being over-loaded on game day. We at Dexcomm are curious; what have your experiences been with cell coverage in large crowds or sporting events?

Also, if you are a Tiger fan, you might want to check out our comments on LSU’s Pro Combat uniforms.