New Verizon Service for Northwest Small Businesses Funnels Wireline and Wireless Messages to Single Voice Mailbox

EVERETT, Wash. -- Tired of making several calls to get all your voice mail messages? So busy that you sometimes forget to check all your mailboxes and miss an important message?

With Verizon's new OnePoint^SM Voice Mail service, it takes only one call to retrieve messages left at both your Verizon wireline and wireless phone numbers.

OnePoint Voice Mail is available today to small businesses in Washington, Oregon and Idaho.

"Our customers have been asking us for a single voice mailbox for all their Verizon phone numbers, including wireless," said Rich McCusker, director of Retail Messaging Solutions for Verizon. "Businesses want products to help them better manage the daily deluge of phone calls and messages. Verizon's OnePoint Voice Mail is a convenient way to do that, saving time and enabling businesses to increase productivity."

With OnePoint Voice Mail, messages left at work and at wireless numbers can be accessed from one mailbox at the same time. The service forwards up to five Verizon numbers to the single, wireline mailbox - the main telephone number and four other numbers, including Verizon Wireless numbers. Small businesses can customize the service based on the types of messages they wish to have in one voice mailbox.

Features of the new service include:

• Pager notification and special delivery features notify customers when a new message is in their mailbox, eliminating the need to check for messages.

• Callers can be transferred to an alternate number or a person who can assist the caller.

• Important messages can be sent without interrupting the recipient. Customers can record and send messages to other Verizon voice mail subscribers any time, day or night, without ringing the recipient's telephone or interrupting a call in progress.

• Group lists enable customers to record messages and send them to several recipients. Business associates receive important messages instantaneously.

• More than four hours of messages -- up to 50, five-minute messages - can be stored in the OnePoint mailbox for 30 days.

The OnePoint service monthly fee starts at $16 and there is a one-time activation fee of $20. This fee will be waived for customers who order OnePoint Voice Mail before May 17, 2003.

OnePoint Voice Mail is offered exclusively with Verizon local and Verizon Wireless phone numbers. No special telephone equipment is needed to use the service; however, customers must have a Call Forwarding feature for each number forwarded to the OnePoint Voice Mail box. Monthly prices for Call Forwarding vary by location.

Verizon first introduced OnePoint Voice Mail to its Tampa, Fla., customers last summer. OnePoint Voice Mail will be available in other markets later this year.

To learn more about Verizon's OnePoint Voice Mail service, customers can go to www.verizon.com. To order, customers should call their local Verizon business office or visit their local Verizon Plus store.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) is one of the world's leading providers of communications services. Verizon companies are the largest providers of wireline and wireless communications in the United States, with 135.8 million access line equivalents and 32.5 million Verizon Wireless customers. Verizon is also the largest directory publisher in the world. With more than $67 billion in annual revenues and 229,500 employees, Verizon's global presence extends to 33 countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Pacific. For more information on Verizon, visit www.verizon.com.

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