Verizon Wireless Broadband Arrives in Rochester and Syracuse, New York

[Andy]

Wireless Broadband Arrives in Syracuse, New York
Verizon Wireless Brings BroadbandAccess Wireless Internet Service and V CAST Consumer Multimedia Service to Upstate New York




07/11/2005

SYRACUSE, NY — Building on its successful strategy to provide customers superior wireless services in the United States, Verizon Wireless today announced the launch of two award-winning services in the Syracuse metropolitan area, one developed primarily for business customers, the other for the consumer market. BroadbandAccess – the fastest wide-area wireless Internet access service available in the nation – and V CAST – the nation’s first wireless broadband multimedia service for consumers – are both available today in the Syracuse and Rochester metro areas, along the New York State Thruway corridor between those two markets, and west along the Thruway to the Batavia area. Both services run on the company’s high-speed EV-DO (Evolution Data-Optimized) wireless broadband network, the nation’s largest and fastest wireless broadband network.

“The launch of our high-speed wireless broadband network in Syracuse and Rochester provides customers with the latest and greatest in mobile wireless technology,” said John Palmer, president of Verizon Wireless’ Upstate New York Region. “BroadbandAccess provides mobile workers full access to their corporate information, just as if they were attached via a high-speed wired connection, but with the freedom of true mobility. With V CAST, consumers can access the latest in multimedia programming to stay connected, informed and entertained via their wireless phones.”

BroadbandAccess

The company’s highly touted BroadbandAccess service, available to mobile professionals and enterprise customers, allows customers in the Syracuse metropolitan area to connect wirelessly to the Internet via their laptop at broadband speeds, a convenient way to conduct business. The nation’s largest and fastest wireless broadband service, BroadbandAccess is faster than any competing widely available wide-area wireless data service. With BroadbandAccess, customers can download a 1 Megabyte email attachment (for example, a small PowerPoint presentation or a large PDF file), or receive three digital pictures (each 400 x 600 pixels) in less than 20 seconds. Because EV-DO technology is backward compatible – a distinct advantage to the company’s CDMA technology – customers who travel outside a BroadbandAccess coverage area with an EV-DO device will seamlessly switch to Verizon Wireless’ existing NationalAccess service, which runs on the company’s 1xRTT network.

“Now, customers from coast to coast are enjoying the speed, mobility and productivity benefits of our BroadbandAccess service,” said Palmer. “Verizon Wireless’ EV-DO network is one of the fastest wide-area, widely available wireless high-speed networks in the country, giving BroadbandAccess customers a superior wireless data experience while away from the office.”

Working with virtual private network (VPN) connections, business customers can use BroadbandAccess as an extension of their corporate local area network (LAN) or intranet, allowing them to work from any location within the BroadbandAccess coverage area, as if they were in the office. BroadbandAccess, with typical user download speeds of 400-700 kilobits per second (kbps), is ideal for downloading files and business-critical information residing behind corporate firewalls and for accessing e-mail, intranets and the Internet. BroadbandAccess’ EV-DO technology has its own data protection and authentication and is designed to work with a business’ existing IT infrastructure and security solutions.

BroadbandAccess is available for $79.99 monthly access for unlimited use with a one- or two-year customer agreement. For more information on BroadbandAccess from Verizon Wireless, visit www.verizonwireless.com/broadbandaccess.

V CAST

Verizon Wireless’ V CAST service enables consumers to access short video content on-demand, viewing current news, weather, sports and entertainment programming. With V CAST, customers can also download and play cutting-edge 3D games, watch music videos and concert performances from favorite artists, view short programs specifically designed for mobile phones and other video content right on their phones. For a list of all videos and 3D game entertainment available on V CAST, visit www.getvcast.com.

For $15.00 monthly access added to their Verizon Wireless calling plan, customers in Syracuse can get the V CAST VPak which includes unlimited access to a wide array of more than 300 daily updated video clips from leading news, sports, weather and entertainment content providers. Unlimited basic short content is included, but application download fees apply for 3D games, premium video short content, and all other Get It Now® applications. There are no airtime charges to download, stream or watch V CAST content. Customers can also download, stream or watch premium short video content, available at additional cost, which includes video such as music videos, select sports clips and mobisodes. Verizon Wireless V CAST customers also receive monthly access and unlimited browsing on Verizon Wireless’ Mobile Web 2.0SMnews and information service. For a limited time, customers who sign up for V CAST receive one month of service free.

EV-DO Network

V CAST and BroadbandAccess run on Verizon Wireless’ EV-DO network, which began commercial operation in October 2003 in San Diego and Washington, D.C and is now the nation’s largest and fastest wireless broadband network. Verizon Wireless’ EV-DO network initially made its commercial debut with BroadbandAccess wireless Internet access service for business customers and mobile professionals. The company launched its V CAST wireless broadband multimedia service in February 2005.

Verizon Wireless expanded the EV-DO coverage area – the V CAST and BroadbandAccess service areas – to cover 75 million Americans by the end of 2004. The company’s expansion strategy includes adding new markets and expanding network coverage in existing markets and the company is on track to cover half of the U.S. population by the end of 2005.

In the greater Syracuse area, Verizon Wireless’ EV-DO coverage area includes the City of Syracuse – including Syracuse University – and most of Onondaga County. Coverage extends westward along the New York State Thruway corridor to the greater Rochester and Batavia areas and southward to the Finger Lakes area in several locations including Geneva and Auburn.

Verizon Wireless has invested more than $4 billion annually on the build-out and enhancement of its networks since the company’s inception in 2000, and last year alone it invested $5 billion, including build-out of the wireless broadband EV-DO network. In Upstate New York, Verizon Wireless invested more than $168 million in network enhancements in 2004.

V CAST and BroadbandAccess Accolades

Within weeks of the initial launch, Verizon Wireless’ V CAST service won best “Mobile/Remote Service” at the fifth annual MobileFocus Awards, which were presented at CTIA in New Orleans and sponsored by Pepcom and LAPTOP magazine. The awards honor the best in mobile and wireless technology.

The company’s BroadbandAccess wireless Internet service has received recognition as well. In May 2005, CMP Media LLC’s Network Computing named Verizon Wireless as the Best Business Data Service for BroadbandAccess in the publication’s 2005 Well-Connected Awards, beating out business data services of two other major wireless carriers.

LAPTOP Magazine awarded Verizon Wireless’ BroadbandAccess service with the Editor’s Choice Award in its December 2004 issue. According to the articled titled, “Be Your Own Hot Spot,” BroadbandAccess is the only wide-area broadband service “that lives up to the hype.” Reviewers concluded, “In short, Verizon Wireless’ BroadbandAccess service lives up to its name. If you live or work in one of the current coverage areas, you’ll be rewarded with a high-speed connection that’s perfect for those of us with little patience. Which is just about every mobile worker we know.”

V CAST Phones and BroadbandAccess PC Cards

Customers can access V CAST on three hot new phones. The featured phone is the new LG VX8000 phone – with its full-motion short content with audio streaming and downloading and playback capabilities, the LG VX8000 offers customers a rich and rewarding interactive experience. The LG VX8000 is available for $149.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate with a two-year customer agreement.

V CAST customers can also check out the latest in news, entertainment and sports on the Samsung a890, which is $149.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate with a two-year customer agreement, and the CDM8940 from UTStarcom Personal Communications (formerly Audiovox Communications Corp.) for $99.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate with a two-year customer agreement.

Verizon Wireless offers several PC Cards for BroadbandAccess customers, including the PC 5220, Kyocera KPC-650 and Novatel V620 cards. For a limited time, Verizon Wireless customers with unlimited use data plans can buy the BroadbandAccess PC 5220 for $99.99, Kyocera KPC-650 for $69.99 or Novatel V620 card for $49.99 after a $100 rebate and a two-year customer agreement.

For more information on V CAST or BroadbandAccess from Verizon Wireless, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com. Business customers can contact a Verizon Wireless Business Sales Representative directly at 1-800-VZW-4-BIZ.

(EDITORS: Broadcast-quality B-roll footage featuring V CAST and BroadbandAccess is available online. Log on to www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia to preview and request video segments, which can be received in newsrooms digitally, by tape or via satellite.)