Verizon Going Big in Bay Area To Show Off Its Network for Super Bowl 50

Hundreds of Verizon employees have spent almost two years getting ready for Super Bowl 50 in the San Francisco Bay area where the carrier says it plans to show off its network. Verizon has built 16 new area cell sites, installed 75 small cells and is deploying a patented antenna system to reach the lower stadium seats at Levi's Stadium, IT said. On Super Bowl weekend, Verizon plans to deploy 14 mobile cell sites in high-traffic locations. Overall, the carrier said it made a $70 million investment in the area to improve its network there before the big game. “We do this because we anticipate that this will be the most ‘shared’ Super Bowl,” said Brian Mecum, vice president-network for Verizon Wireless. “A better wireless network matters when it comes to capturing and sharing life’s greatest moments.” At last year’s Super Bowl, Verizon customers in Phoenix used 4.1 terabytes of data, the carrier said. “A state-of-the-art facility, Levi’s Stadium is designed to handle 1.5 times the wireless data traffic on the Verizon network as compared to University of Phoenix Stadium.” The Super Bowl will be played Feb. 7.