Verizon Wireless Customers In St. Louis Get Faster New Wireless Broadband Network

ST. LOUIS, MO — Verizon Wireless customers in the St. Louis and surrounding areas can now have access to the Internet and to their e-mail and corporate data at faster speeds, uploading files eight to nine times faster than before as Verizon Wireless rolls out its next-generation high-speed broadband network. Based on CDMA 1x Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO) Revision A (Rev. A) technology, the enhanced wireless broadband network provides Verizon Wireless customers in St. Louis with data uplink speeds significantly faster than the company's award-winning national EV-DO network, which the company rolled out in June of 2005.

The EV-DO Rev. A network coverage area includes the city of St. Louis and St. Louis County, and spreads into neighboring Missouri and Illinois counties.

In Missouri, coverage extends west along Interstate 70 into Wright City; north along Highway 61 to the St. Charles County border, and southwest along Interstate 44 to Sullivan. The coverage reaches south along Interstate 55 to Festus including the towns of Desoto, Cedar Hill and Hillsboro.

In Illinois, the coverage radius includes the metro-east and extends east past New Baden along Interstates 64/40, east to Carlyle along Highway 50, south to Waterloo along Route 3 and west to Valmeyer along Highway 156. Coverage enhancements in these areas provide Verizon Wireless customers with faster access for receiving and uploading data.

The company's existing EV-DO network enables customers to access BroadbandAccess on their laptops, e-mail on their PDAs, and V CAST Video and Music on their wireless phones. The company's national wireless broadband network, the first in the nation, is already available to more than 200 million Americans in 242 major metropolitan areas and 180 major airports from coast to coast.

"Our existing wireless broadband network has enabled customers to work remotely and stay entertained in unprecedented ways; now we're taking wireless to the next level by introducing technology that helps them work faster," said Mark Crumpton, region president, Kansas/Missouri/Southern Illinois, Verizon Wireless. "Our customers who enjoy the latest technology will applaud Rev. A's faster data uplink speeds for their cutting-edge devices."

The company's flagship business data service, BroadbandAccess, will run faster and more efficiently with the new network enhancements. Customers in enhanced coverage areas can take advantage of upload speeds that are eight to nine times faster than that of the company's existing wireless broadband network, while interacting with Web-based applications with improved latency for a better customer experience. For example, BroadbandAccess customers in enhanced broadband wireless coverage areas can expect average download speeds of 600 kilobits per second (kbps) to 1.4 megabits and average upload speeds of 500-800 kbps, which means customers can download a 1 Megabyte e-mail attachment — the equivalent of a small PowerPoint^® presentation or a large PDF file — in about eight seconds and upload the same-sized file in less than 13 seconds. The enhanced coverage areas allow Verizon Wireless customers to download files approximately ten times faster than customers of wireless service providers who use non-EV-DO technology.

Devices from Verizon Wireless that take advantage of the faster speeds provided by the EV-DO Rev. A network enhancements are the new compact USB720 wireless modem, the AirCard 595 and PC5750 PC Card, which are fully compatible with the company's enhanced and existing wireless broadband networks and the company's NationalAccess network (based on CDMA 1xRTT technology). St. Louis-area customers purchasing these devices can get significantly faster upload speeds and improved download speeds when in an enhanced network coverage area. The devices are also backward compatible, so they will seamlessly switch to the fastest network available, whether that is the enhanced wireless broadband network or the network that operates the company's NationalAccess service. Residents of St. Louis interested in purchasing these devices can contact their local business sales representative at 314-920-4220. The devices are also available online at www.verizonwireless.com.  

For more information about Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com.  

About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation's most reliable wireless voice and data network, serving more than 59 million customers. The largest US wireless company and largest wireless data provider, based on revenues, Verizon Wireless is headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 65,000 employees nationwide. The company 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 preview and request 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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