COVINGTON, Ga. – On Tuesday, AT&T held a ribbon cutting on the Covington Square to celebrate the availability of AT&T Fiber to over 16,000 homes and small businesses in the county. With access to fiber internet, customers can expect a “superfast fiber network” that will help to “close the digital divide” and increase connectivity.
Brian Barfield, an AT&T area manager, expressed high hopes for the benefits that AT&T Fiber will bring to Newton County and the importance of providing this resource to the community.
“This is the latest modern infrastructure and we’ve invested highly in it because it is the future,” Barfield said. “Not only is it fast, but it’s dependable and it’s very important that we play a big role in helping to break this digital divide that exists. What we truly believe is everybody deserves to be connected. What it’s capable of doing and the way it’s capable of helping us is just beyond our imagination.”
Speakers at the ribbon cutting included Newton County Chamber of Commerce president Debbie Harper, Barfield, City of Covington mayor Steve Horton, county manager Harold Cooper and Asher Dozier, vice president of economic development at the Newton County Industrial Development Authority (NCIDA).
Cooper, who attended the event on behalf of county commissioner chairman Marcello Banes, emphasized how the fiber network will directly impact citizens of all ages.
“[Fiber network] helps [children] with having a better access to education,” Cooper said. “Let’s talk about our age-appropriate workforce citizens. It helps them with career opportunities in advance. And let’s talk about our most treasured asset of the community, our darling seniors. It helps them with finding elderly access to programs that will address their holistic needs.”
In describing how the new fiber technology differs from older networks, Barfield explained that fiber “shoots light” that is faster than traditional copper cables. He also said AT&T Fiber can travel further over long distances with speeds that will continue to increase.
Customers interested in receiving AT&T Fiber can sign up to be notified when the service will be available to their address by visiting: att.com/notifyme.
