Verizon Blames Niantic For Pokemon Go Fest Problems

The Pokemon Go Fest this month was a huge disaster. As it kicked off in Chicago's Grant Park, Pokemon Go players experienced a nightmare: widespread server issues.Visitors who traveled from around the world spent hours in the sun, unable to play Pokemon Go due to major bugs and server issues.

The game's developer Niantic accepted responsibility for the event's failure, but in a video by NIantic-sponsored Pokemon Go YouTube channel Trainer Tips, the developer suggested that cell phone providers caused the failure by not providing enough bandwidth and network capacity for Pokemon Go Fest.

Now, one of the cell phone providers are refuting Niantic's claim. A Verizon Wireless spokesperson claimed that it wasn't their fault for the issues that Pokemon Go Fest players faced. "This was not a Verizon issue," the spokesperson told Business Insider.

Verizon that said they've boosted their network capacity for Pokemon Go Fest. The spokesperson also said that players at the event could freely access websites like Facebook and YouTube, "which indicated the issues were outside of Verizon's control, like an issue with the game's server itself."

While it's not rare for players to experience server issues in Pokemon Go, some players with T-Mobile and Sprint (who had portable cell towers for the event) reported better experiences than those who used Verizon and AT&T coverage.

The developer should have anticipated this issue, especially at an event where an estimated 20,000 people showed up.

Despite not commenting on the event's failture, Niantic quickly ensured its (former) fans that they would be getting refunds, and $100 worth of in-game coins.

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