Representatives of AT&T Missouri are downplaying rumors that customers will defect to Verizon when that company starts selling the iPhone on Thursday.
Among other improvements AT&T says that it's invested over $1.7 billion in its St. Louis wireless network.
Nancy Garvey is Vice President and General Manager for AT&T mobility.
She downplayed criticism that AT&T's network is ill-equipped to handle the iPhone's heavy data requirements.
"If you look at the capabilities of our network compared to Verizon, we're the only network were you can surf and talk at the same time. And if you look at our iPhone customer base, two-thirds of them were already AT&T customers." - Nancy Garvey
Garvey says AT&T's network has ranked better on independent tests in the St. Louis area.
Verizon Wireless says it invested more than $90 million in Missouri last year, including upgrades to 343 cell towers.