As the mobile Internet changes the way businesses operate, AT&T is leading the way. We use our knowledge of customers' businesses to deliver customized mobile applications that provide anytime, virtually anywhere access to content and services. And because AT&T provides a highly secure managed hosting environment, businesses get end-to-end solutions that easily integrate with existing applications, software and databases.

Consider global commercial real estate giant Cushman & Wakefield. AT&T worked with C&W to solve a key challenge: Brokers' time in the office is time away from clients. So AT&T developed a custom app — CWmobile — to deliver highly secure mobile access to the proprietary data brokers need to assist with a sale or lease. Says Jim Underhill, C&W CEO for the Americas: "CWmobile gives our professionals the resources they need to deliver an exceptional client experience that our competitors can't match."

Meanwhile, Michigan's Department of Natural Resources (DNR) wanted to encourage people to explore the great outdoors. So AT&T app developers collaborated with the DNR to learn what information would be most helpful to Michiganders and visitors to the state. AT&T used that input to create the MI Camping and Recreation Locator app, which provides mobile access to information on where to camp, hike or cross-country ski in Michigan. Tens of thousands of outdoor enthusiasts have downloaded the app, and campsite reservations have gone up substantially. "With AT&T's help, we're using mobile technology to open up Michigan's amazing natural resources to even more people," says Keith Creagh, DNR director.

By the end of 2012, more than 54,000 customers were using AT&T mobile business applications. AT&T and the state of Michigan created the MI Camping and Recreation Locator app, which gives one-click access to outdoor activities in Michigan.

As consumers increasingly embrace the mobile life, teams across our company are exploring new ways to put smarter applications and seamless connectivity, literally, in the palms of our hands. Jeff Ezell, vice president of consumer product planning and research, AT&T Mobility, talks about the future of mobile  payments:

How will AT&T's concept of mobile payments work?

JEFF "Well, let's say it's date night, and on the way to the movie, you stop for a bite at your favorite restaurant. The show starts soon, so you eat quickly. You take the bill to the register and reach for your … smartphone. You open the mobile wallet on your phone, and with a tap you're paid up and out the door.

"At the theater, you check your mobile wallet to see if there are any promotions. There's an offer for free popcorn if you buy a drink. You tap your phone again, and now you've paid for the drink, gotten your free popcorn and earned loyalty points."

So how far off is this capability?

JEFF "It's right around the corner. AT&T is part of a joint venture that's working to mobilize and transform the way we pay for all kinds of things. We're working to obsolete plastic credit cards and coupons and replace them with a more secure, fully integrated system that's personalized, flexible and all mobile.

"This venture, Isis, is collaborating with credit card companies, banks and merchants to create a nationwide mobile payments platform. It's a simple-to-use system that lets you effortlessly make payments, discover and redeem offers and earn loyalty points. We have trials under way and are planning to expand nationally.

"Today, you'd never go out without your smartphone and your wallet. Soon, you can leave home without your wallet!"

What's the potential for AT&T?

JEFF "It's a big opportunity. U.S. consumers spend $4.2 trillion on 1.2 billion cards and redeem 3 billion coupons each year. Isis gives banks and advertisers a platform to reach consumers and facilitate these transactions on AT&T's network and devices.

"And we see future opportunities to integrate mobile payments into connected cars and digital homes. So someday soon, rather than digging for change in your glove box, you might simply park at a connected meter and your car would automatically add two hours to the clock."

Some researchers believe that by 2016 more than half of new vehicles will have factory-installed, wireless connectivity that works with cars' electronic systems.¹ Says Chris Penrose, senior vice president, emerging devices, AT&T Mobility: "Our cars are becoming part of our connected world. AT&T has an exciting opportunity to help keep drivers safe and make driving more enjoyable. We're working with GM, Ford, Nissan, BMW and other auto manufacturers to lead this trend, and we expect that in the coming years connected cars will drive $1 billion or more in annual revenues for us." Here's a glimpse at what could be possible in the future:

¹ "Global Consumer Telematics Penetration in New Cars to Reach 62% by 2016, According to ABI Research," Dominique Bonte, Vice President and Practice Director, Navigation, Telematics & M2M, ABI Research.

AT&T's innovative approach to wireless network management helps our customers have a great experience … where they live, work and play. To do that, we're deploying multiple complementary network technologies — small cells, distributed antenna systems (DAS) and Wi-Fi.

And in late 2012, we accelerated our push to make our wireless network more dense — in a cost-efficient way. Through 2015, we plan to deploy more than 40,000 small cells and more than 1,000 additional distributed antenna systems across our network. This will improve network quality, enhance spectrum efficiency and provide better wireless coverage inside buildings. So more customers can update their social networks, send photos and access their favorite apps … even in high-traffic areas like sports venues and airports.

By design, these solutions are largely seamless and invisible to customers. But for AT&T the results are easy to see. For example, data and voice capacity have more than doubled at sports venues with AT&T DAS — small antennas integrated into the design of an arena or stadium.

Heinz Field, December 23, 2012: An AT&T DAS lets Pittsburgh Steelers fans use their smartphones to check the scores of other games or update their fantasy football rosters … even surrounded by tens of thousands of fellow members of the Steelers Nation.

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AT&T ended 2012 with 50 million smartphones, tablets and other mobile Internet devices on our wireless network, and we work nonstop to ensure our customers have a great experience. Because Mike Maus has management responsibility for AT&T's wireless network in New York City, he has a unique perspective on what it takes to make that happen:

New York City is arguably the epicenter of the mobile Internet revolution. What's unique about it?

MIKE "New York is in a league of its own with its incredible concentration of highly sophisticated customers and dense vertical landscape. New Yorkers were early adopters of smartphones, and they're among the heaviest users of data. Beginning with the first smartphones, we saw mobile Internet volumes on our New York network like no one had seen before.

"And our customers need connectivity at every level of Manhattan — from its skyscrapers to street level to the subways. We've been refining our network design for a number of years to meet these demands. The network is strong and stable. But we're also vigilant about maintaining it. The city never sleeps, and our work never stops."

How does AT&T's work in New York represent what's going on across the network nationwide?

MIKE "New York City is the final checkpoint for much of the new hardware, software and devices entering our network. We test extensively in labs — but the ultimate test is hundreds of thousands of people on the move in a dense urban core, placing demands on your network in "real time." Like they say … if we can do it here, we can do it anywhere."

As AT&T expands 4G LTE and makes network coverage denser, what will that mean for customers?

MIKE "LTE is an impressive technology with staggering data speeds — they rival what you'd see when you're wired at home. We are working to deliver this impressive technology to hundreds of millions of Americans by the end of 2014, up from more than 170 million at the end of 2012. This will allow even more people to take advantage of our LTE network through quick download and upload speeds of their favorite applications and services.

"Our customers also want to be connected nearly everywhere they go. Our investment in a denser wireless grid through new cell sites and small-cell technology will help make this possible in New York … and around the country. This densification plan will allow better in-building coverage and more consistent coverage as well as additional capacity where our customers work and live. We believe they will really notice the difference."