Verizon Offers Benefits of High Speed T-1 Circuits to Small and Medium-Sized Businesses

NEW YORK - Verizon announced today that it is now offering Performance Edge T-1, a service that enables small and medium-sized businesses to consolidate all of their data, Internet, local and long-distance services on one high-speed, high-capacity circuit. Performance Edge T-1 is flexible and cost-effective and makes it much easier for businesses to manage their communications networks.

The new service is provided over a T-1 circuit, containing 24 digital channels that can be designed for voice services, high-speed data or a combination of both. The full T-1 circuit can be custom-tailored to meet specific voice and data requirements. Businesses have the flexibility of reconfiguring the T-1 as their voice and data needs change.

"Until now, these circuits were economically feasible only for large businesses, which typically have complex communications requirements and can make full use of the capacity and efficiency that T-1's provide," said Michael Hassett, vice president, business solutions for Verizon. "But the communications requirements of small and medium-sized businesses have grown increasingly complex so that today, a T-1 makes sense for many of these businesses as well."

To keep the price of Performance Edge T-1 affordable for small and medium-sized businesses, Verizon is offering a series of discounts, rebates and fee waivers for the bundle of services that customers would typically combine with Performance Edge. It offers three options:

• Channelized T-1 with dedicated long-distance and dedicated Internet access
• Channelized T-1 with dedicated Internet access
• Channelized T-1 with dedicated long-distance

These bundles are less expensive than ordering the services separately. Verizon is offering a discount of 5 percent to 10 percent on monthly rates for high-speed dedicated Internet access from Verizon Online. Speeds range from 128 Kbps (kilobits per second) to 768 Kbps depending on the location. In addition, customers who sign two-year agreements by Aug. 31, 2003, for this service qualify for an additional $1,000 rebate and a waiver of the set-up fees (valued at up to $300).

Verizon is also offering reduced long-distance rates as low as 3.7 cents per minute for direct-dialed, state-to-state calls, depending on term and volume commitments.

With Performance Edge T-1, customers receive one bill for data, local and long distance, and make just one call for support and customer care. "This is another example of how Verizon is the one source for business communications for small and medium-sized businesses -- and how we are increasing our focus on this important market segment," said Mary Yarbrough, vice president of retail markets for Verizon.

Verizon's bundles of voice and data services combine the services that small businesses want and need now. According to The Yankee Group, of all small and medium-sized businesses that want bundles of services, 53 percent want Internet access as part of the bundle. Yankee Group predicts that as small medium-sized businesses embrace broadband, they will look for additional ways to leverage the Internet, adding additional applications including Web conferencing, remote access, enhanced voice applications and other Web-site applications.

"Integrated voice and data service offerings over a dedicated T-1 are critical to the success of any service provider in the SMB market, said Michael Lauricella, program manager-small and medium business strategies for The Yankee Group. "This offering allows Verizon the ability to offer customers a migration path from DSL to a more advanced and scalable communications environment."

Verizon's Performance Edge T-1 service is currently available in Texas, Florida, Washington, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont West Virginia and the District of Columbia.

For more information about Performance Edge T-1, businesses can go to the Web site at www.verizon.com/data or call their local Verizon business office.

Verizon Communications

A Fortune 10 company, 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 136.6 million access line equivalents and 33.3 million Verizon Wireless customers. Verizon is the third-largest long-distance carrier for U.S. consumers, with 13.2 million long-distance lines, and the company is also the largest directory publisher in the world, as measured by directory titles and circulation. With approximately $67 billion in annual revenues and 227,000 employees, Verizon's global presence extends to the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Pacific. For more information on Verizon, visit www.verizon.com.

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