Verizon Wireless Extends Rollout of 3G Network to Metro Omaha/Council Bluffs Area

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OMAHA, NE — Verizon Wireless announced today it has expanded its Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO) third generation (3G) wide-area network to Omaha and Council Bluffs, Iowa. Both cities are the first in their respective states to join the company's coast-to-coast broadband network.

The expansion means that Verizon Wireless customers can access the company's high-speed wireless broadband network while traveling throughout the Omaha/Council Bluffs area and that they can enjoy two additional services: BroadbandAccess, the company's high-speed wireless broadband network, which is geared toward mobile professionals and business customers and has average user speeds of 400-700 kilobits per second (kbps); and V CAST, a consumer-oriented multimedia service that offers music and short content on demand, including cutting-edge 3D games, music videos, news, weather, sports and more.

"This expansion is part of our continuing focus on investing in our network reliability and providing innovative high-speed data services to our customers in the Omaha/Council Bluffs area and across the country," said Nancy B. Clark, president, Great Plains Region, Verizon Wireless. "With BroadbandAccess, Omaha's mobile and business professionals now will be able to take their desktop experience wherever they go in the coverage area, enabling them to wirelessly access their calendars, the Internet, e-mail and critical business information residing behind corporate firewalls."

Verizon Wireless was the first national wireless provider to commercially launch a high-speed wireless broadband network in the United States. The Omaha/Council Bluffs area is the latest metropolitan market to be added to Verizon Wireless' EV-DO network coverage area, now available to more than half the population of the U.S.

BroadbandAccess
BroadbandAccess provides mobile workers full access to their corporate information as if they were attached to the information via a high-speed wired connection but with the freedom of true mobility. Developed with a range of users in mind, the service enables large enterprises, small to medium-sized businesses and mobile professionals to conduct business anytime, anywhere in the BroadbandAccess coverage area via a secure, true high-speed data connection.

Business customers can access information when they are on the road - at customer locations, at job sites or in taxis - with BroadbandAccess. With BroadbandAccess, customers could download a 1 megabyte e-mail 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. Also, customers who travel outside a BroadbandAccess coverage area with an EV-DO device will switch seamlessly to Verizon Wireless' existing NationalAccess network, in which customers experience average data transmission speeds between 60 and 80 kbps with bursts up to 144 kbps.

"BroadbandAccess service gives our enterprise customers two key advantages in wireless communication - speed and mobility," said Clark. "With that comes an increase in productivity and bottom-line business benefits."

V CAST
The company's high-speed network also enables its V CAST multimedia services, offering customers the ability to download full song tracks, play cutting-edge 3D games and stream video clips straight to the handset. With content updated daily, customers can watch dozens of broadcasts, from breaking news and weather to sports highlights, the hottest entertainment clips and more.

V CAST Music, available to customers with V CAST Music-enabled handsets, is the world's most comprehensive, over-the-air mobile music download service. Customers with V CAST Music can download full song tracks directly to their Verizon Wireless handsets or to PCs equipped with Windows® XP operating software. The V CAST Music on demand service includes access to a catalog of more than 1.4 million songs.

Coverage
BroadbandAccess and V CAST coverage will be available to 92 percent of the population of the Omaha/Council Bluffs metro area and surrounding communities. The coverage area extends north from Omaha to the Douglas/Washington County border, west to U.S. Highway 6, south to U.S. Highway 370 (including the city of Bellevue) and east of Council Bluffs to Interstate 29 just south of Interstate 80.

Product Offering
For a limited time, Verizon Wireless customers with an existing voice plan can receive unlimited BroadbandAccess service for $59.99 monthly access with a new two-year customer agreement. Otherwise, BroadbandAccess is available for $79.99 monthly access with a new one- or two-year customer agreement. BroadbandAccess service also is available as an integrated option on select notebook computers, including laptops from Dell, Lenovo, HP and Toshiba.

Wireless PC cards for BroadbandAccess customers include the Verizon Wireless PC 5740, Verizon Wireless V620 and Kyocera KPC 650. A new Novatel Wireless V640 card is available for laptop owners with ExpressCard/34 or ExpressCard/54 slots rather than a traditional PCMCIA slot.

In addition, several handsets have the ability to "tether" to a laptop's USB port, with the purchase of a Mobile Office Kit. BroadbandAccess-powered PDAs offered by Verizon Wireless include the Motorola QTM, the Palm® TreoTM700w and the Palm Treo 700p. Popular BlackBerry® options include the new 8703e, the 7250 and 7130e.

To access V CAST video and games, customers need a V CAST-enabled handset and a $15.00 monthly subscription added to their Verizon Wireless calling plan. Currently, nearly 20 music capable handsets are available, including the popular Chocolate by LG and the Motorola RAZR V3m.

Customers with a V CAST Music-enabled handset can pay as they go to download songs directly to their phone for $1.99 per song plus airtime, download songs to their PC for $0.99, and transfer their existing compatible digital music collection to their V CAST Music-enabled handset or memory card for free from their PC. Purchases from the handset include two copies of every song - one for the handset and one for the PC.

For more information about Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a local Verizon Wireless Communications Store or go to www.verizonwireless.com.

About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless owns and operates the nation's most reliable wireless network, serving 54.8 million voice and data customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) and Vodafone (NYSE and LSE: VOD). Find more information on the Web at www.verizonwireless.com. To receive broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.

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