Wireless Gaining At the Expense Of Wire-Line Service

By Antone Gonsalves, TechWeb News

An increasing number of people are using their cellular phones for long-distance calls, giving them one more reason to dump their wire-line telephone service. An annual survey of U.S. households on the use of communications services has found that cellular phone users today are making 60 percent of their long-distance calls on their handsets, market researcher The Yankee Group said Wednesday. That number has been increasing steadily year over year, with 35 percent in 2002 and 43 percent in 2003.

«We’re seeing long distance as a standalone industry disappearing,» Yankee analyst Kate Griffin said.

Wireless carriers offering unlimited plans, which include long distance, is a key driver behind the trend, Griffin said. As a result, consumers are given one more reason to use their wired home phones less.

«People are using more and more minutes year over year, and as they use their cellular phones more, their replacing traditional land lines,» Griffin said.

So far, only about 3.5 percent of U.S. households have opted to dump their traditional phone service, a move that’s mostly prevalent among young adults and singles. Among the reasons for still having a home phone is for a data line to the computer and having one number to reach the family.

To prevent the replacement of wire-line phones by cellular phones, however, carriers will have to offer both services as a bundle, and begin integrating the services. Carriers, for example, could eventually offer one telephone number, access to email and voice mail and free calling to the home number by a cellular phone.

«You want to begin to connect wireless and wire-line usage, so there is a consumer perception of value (in having both),» Griffin said.

Bundling of services is certainly a plus among many consumers, the annual Yankee survey of about 2,100 households found. The percentage of households interested in having a single provider for all their communications need has risen steadily from 38 percent in 2002 to 49 percent this year.

This is good news for telephone carriers and cable operators, which have been selling packages that include high-speed Internet connections, telephone service and TV programming at a price that’s less than if the consumer bought each product separately. The idea is to provide so many services that the customer will find it too difficult to switch to a competitor.

«One way to build loyalty is to tie the products together and then build connections between the products,» Griffin said.

Consumers who have bought their wire-line telephone service and their high-speed Internet connection in a package from a single carrier are as much as 40 percent less likely to leave than the average U.S. household, The Yankee Group found.

What we list: We included calling plans available on a one-year contract for less than $70 a month ($90 a month on shared-use plans), including generally available promotions. Coverage maps are based on data the carriers gave us and may not show every gap. We tested AT&T Wireless’s reception in addition to Cingular’s, but opted not to list its rates separately: We cannot recommend signing up with AT&T Wireless at this point because it merged with Cingular last week and because Cingular offers comparable prices.

What the cost estimates mean: We calculated the cheapest way to cover five monthly calling patterns, assuming calls average a bit more than three minutes each and half occur during weekday billing periods. «Light use» is about 30 minutes of local calls. «Moderate use» covers roughly three hours of local calls. «Heavy use» is eight hours, including 48 minutes of calls made from elsewhere on the East Coast to local numbers in those other areas, and 24 minutes of long-distance use. «Land-line replacement» is 20 hours or so, including two hours of non-local calling (of which 30 minutes were outside the East Coast) and 160 minutes of long distance. «Chatty couple» is about six hours of use, shared between two phones. All estimates add Caller ID and voice-mail charges if applicable, exclude taxes and are based on December 2003 call-length data from the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association (www.wow-com.com).

Company expands local free calling area in Barrie to include calls to Toronto

TORONTO, Oct. 25 /CNW/ — Sprint Canada Inc., a subsidiary of Call-Net
Enterprises Inc., announced today that it is now offering local home and
business telephone service to three more municipalities in Ontario -- Barrie,
Markham and Richmond Hill. With this expansion, Sprint Canada facilities are
available to approximately 35% of households and businesses across Canada.

«Residents and businesses in Barrie, Markham and Richmond Hill will now
have a choice when it comes to selecting a provider for their local service,» said Bill Linton, president and chief executive officer, Sprint Canada. «In
addition, we have expanded the local calling areas of Barrie to include calls to numbers in the 416 and 647 area of Toronto. This means that our customers in Barrie will be able to call Toronto without incurring a long distance charge.»

Sprint Canada’s home and business phone service offers a comprehensive
selection of features as well as bundles including the wireless bundle. The
basic home phone service starts at $29.95 per month and includes one calling
feature. The home phone service and unlimited North American long distance
bundle is $49.90. There is no fee to change telephone companies. Customers
keep the same phone number and maintain their listing in the phone directory.

«Sprint Canada’s local service is growing at a rate of over 50 per cent
per year, as more and more Canadians become aware of our competitive prices,
our outstanding service and just how easy it is to switch,» added Linton.
«Sprint Canada is the smarter choice for savvy consumers and growing
businesses.»

To switch to Sprint Canada’s home phone service, consumers can call
1–866-JOIN-RED (1–866–564–6733) or visit the Company’s web site at
www.sprint.ca. Business users can call 1–800–496–4401.

Call-Net, primarily through its subsidiary Sprint Canada, was one of the
first companies to offer competitive telecommunication services to Canadian
consumers and businesses in 1986. Initially, the company offered long distance
services. Today, the Company provides home phone, wireless, long distance, and
IP services to households, and local, long distance, toll free, enhanced
voice, data and IP services to businesses of all sizes. Through Sprint in the
United States, Sprint Canada offers a seamless North American network to
multi-national organizations.

Sprint Canada launched its local home and business service in 1999,
greatly expanding the number of markets in 2001. As of June 30, 2004, Sprint
Canada had activated almost 260,000 local home phone service lines and over
78,000 local business line equivalents.

Call-Net Enterprises Inc. and Sprint Canada Inc.

Call-Net Enterprises Inc., (TSX: FON, FON.B) primarily through its wholly
owned subsidiary Sprint Canada Inc., is a leading Canadian integrated
communications solutions provider of home phone, wireless, long distance and
IP services to households, and local, long distance, toll free, enhanced
voice, data and IP services to businesses across Canada. Call-Net,
headquartered in Toronto, owns and operates an extensive national fibre
network, has over 151 co-locations in five major urban areas including 33
municipalities and maintains network facilities in the United States and the
United Kingdom. For more information, visit www.callnet.ca and www.sprint.ca.

Note for Investors:

This news release includes statements about expected future events and/or
financial results that are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and
uncertainties. For those statements, we claim the protection of the safe
harbor for forward-looking statements provisions contained in the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The company cautions that actual
performance will be affected by a number of factors, many of which are beyond
the Company’s control. Future events and results may vary substantially from
what the Company currently foresees. Discussion of the various factors that
may affect future results is contained in the Company’s recent filings with
the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Ontario Securities Commission and
SEDAR.

By LENIE LECTURA
TODAY Reporter

Globe Telecom has started to offer money transfer service through short message service (SMS), two months after its rival Smart Communications Inc. launched a similar service.

In a newspaper advertisement, Globe said the cash transfer service also allows its subscribers to use their mobile phone handset to pay for movie tickets, medicine, books and fares. With a subscriber base of more than 12 million, Globe is looking at expanding its wireless services and not relying solely on subscriber additions and traditional phone services to help boost revenues.

Globe had predicted that cellular penetration rate by next year will hit 45 percent to 50 percent which means that the number of cellular phone users in the country will reach half of the 86 million population.

The wireless market now has a penetration rate of 31 percent. Globe had earlier projected a mobile market penetration rate of 33 percent to 40 percent in 2005.

Just recently, Globe, jointly owned by Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. and Ayala Corp., partnered with SmarTone Telecommunications Holdings Inc. to allow the Filipino customers of the Hong Kong-based mobile phone company to buy airtime and send it to friends and relatives in the Philippines.

Smart, a unit of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., pioneered this service in August.

It forged a partnership with Hong Kong CSL Ltd. last August 27 to sell to the more than 180,000 Filipino workers mobile-phone services that gives subscribers much cheaper text messaging, voice call rates, and innovative services Smart has been known for.

Smart is also expected to partner soon with Singapore’s MobileOne for a cellular service catering to the 85,000 Filipinos that own mobile phones in the Lon City.

An estimated 87 percent of some 180,000 OFWs living in Hong Kong, or more than 150,000, own mobile phones, and the majority of these mobile phone subscribers are on prepaid subscription. Smart and CSL are eyeing a subscriber base anywhere from 30,000 to 35,000 by year-end.

Company officials said 1528 Smart handled 15,000 transactions worth P120 million in its first two months.

Smart is looking at offering the same service to other countries where it would be allowed to enter into joint-venture arrangements but with the intention of serving more OFWs across the world which total to eight million with an estimated yearly remittance of close to $8 billion.

Both cellular firms are expanding their wireless services to the estimated 7.4 million Filipino workers abroad as over a third of the nation’s 84 million population already subscribe to a mobile-phone service.

Abandoning landlines doesn’t make sense for many — yet

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) -- In a few short decades, today’s children will tell their disbelieving kids that long, narrow cords once anchored telephones to outlets in the wall.

Traditional landline phones are facing a tandem attack from Internet calling services, or VoIP, and wireless phones -- both of which offer some distinct advantages to the standard handset-and-cradle. And a small but increasing number of Americans is making the leap to the cell-phone-only life. But there are plenty of reasons to stay anchored to the landline, at least for now, particularly for families with kids.

Among the concerns cited by consumers not yet ready to cut the cord: They need their phone line for Internet access, and they don’t feel comfortable relying solely on a cell given mobile-phones’ unreliable call quality, according to a Forrester Research report earlier this year.

But these barriers will soon fall. For each concern, there is «a dynamic going on in the market that in the next couple of years will change these people’s thinking,» said Charles Golvin, a principal analyst at Forrester Research.

For instance, as people migrate from dial-up to broadband, «’I need it for Internet access’ becomes less and less important,» he said.

Plus, «cell-phone service continues to improve. The carriers invest billions of dollars every year in their networks. Some of that is about new technology, but a lot of it is about improving service,» he said.

Mobile from the get-go

Already, these barriers are nonexistent for young adults: 46 percent of those who’ve abandoned landlines are 18 to 34 years old, according to Forrester.

Some «college kids may never have had a landline. At 14 or 15 their parents gave them a cell phone,» said Allan Keiter, president of MyRatePlan.com, a consumer price-comparison site.

As colleges increasingly switch from landlines to cell phones or VoIP service, students graduate not having used a landline in years. At that point, «why do I need to get a landline?» Keiter said. «The whole mindset is different. That’s where most of the growth comes from.»

Some 5.5 percent of U.S. households, or about 5.8 million households, now rely solely on cell phones, up from 1.4 percent in 2001, according to the results of 26,000 in-person interviews by Mediamark, a market research firm.

Show me a better plan

While those who’ve already cut their landlines are young and tend to earn about $34,300 on average, those who say they’re planning to do so in the future are older and wealthier.

Forty-five percent of those who plan to abandon their landlines are 35 years old to 45 years old and earn about $58,300 on average, according to Forrester Research.

They might be waiting for some improved cell-phone offerings before they make that move. For a family of four with multiple phones at home «it could get a lot more expensive to try to replicate that (landline service) with cell-phone service,» Keiter said, given that landline services offer unlimited calling for about $35 per month.

That doesn’t include long-distance, but that’s available for less than 3 cents a minute these days, with no added fees. On a cell-phone plan, «you’re paying for every minute both incoming and outgoing. You could blow through your bucket of minutes pretty quickly,» Keiter said.

To compare options, consumers must assess the minutes they spend on the phone. Many wireless carriers offer 1,000 «any time» minutes for $39.99 plus free long distance. As a general rule, if you’re hitting 1,000 minutes or more a month, a landline is likely cheaper, Keiter said.

That’s one reason wireless providers will soon offer, for instance, family plans that combine prepaid minutes with buckets of minutes, which may inspire more people to cut their landlines.

«One of the problems with family plans is ’I give Junior a cell phone and we’re sharing the same minutes and all my minutes are gone in three days,’» Golvin said.

If the kids’ phones are prepaid, they can’t make phone calls after their minutes are used up, except for permitted calls to, say, their parents’ numbers.

Another option for consumers to consider is VoIP. For instance, Vonage offers unlimited calling in the U.S. and Canada for $24.99. See full story comparing rates.

More than 12 million U.S. households could switch to VoIP by 2009, though the young Americans who are opting for wireless-only are unlikely to make the switch, according to a new study. See full story.

Not quite wireless yet

Those interested in snipping their wires should first consider the following:

Satellite TV, TiVo and DSL connections often require a telephone line. If you’re using one of those services, it might pay to stick to your regular phone plan. Or, consider scaling back to a bare-bones phone plan, available for about $15 a month, and make your telephone calls solely via wireless.

Some credit-card companies don’t allow applicants to use a mobile phone number as the primary phone number on the account. They insist on a landline number to activate the card, Golvin said, though this may change in the future.
Wireless service usually comes with free long-distance, an added incentive to switch, but remember it’s not free if you go over your minutes. «Long-distance on wireless is free, but you’re also using up air time,» Keiter said. Overage charges now average about 40 cents a minute, far higher than the long-distance rates of 2.75 cents a minute that Keiter offers on his site. «If you have a $39.99 (wireless) plan for 500 minutes and you end up talking 600 minutes, your bill just doubled.»

When your home-security alarm rings, the system uses a telephone line to dial out. Before you cut the cord, consider asking for the latest in home security: Wireless emergency signals. «ADT and Protection One are beginning to promote wireless replacements for the security infrastructure in the house, the part that dials out,» Golvin said. «They pitch it as a security upgrade because the nasty guy could come and snip your phone wire.»

While phone companies with a stake in wireless services, including Verizon, SBC and BellSouth, aren’t about to hawk the idea of ditching landlines, the trend towards a cell-phone-only life is helping to drive a surge in bundled packages, Golvin said. That means discounts to customers who buy everything or at least a few services -- local, long-distance, Internet access, satellite television and wireless phone service -- through one company. Consider researching what deals are available before dropping your landline.

No more «phoning home.» In a cell-phone-only world, everyone has a separate number. That can be a benefit or a drawback, depending on your lifestyle. Note: Companies may soon start offering services where one call will ring two cell phones at once, Golvin said, so the married couple awaiting word from the remodeler won’t miss the call.

While an enhanced 911 system is being addressed, currently emergency operators cannot determine your location if you dial 911 from your cell phone.

Links Average Cell Phone with Landline for Extended Power, Convenience and Comfort

Melville, NY WHP Wireless Inc., which is committed to expanding the utility and convenience of all types of communication products, is shipping its Cellsocket cellular phone accessory. Cellsocket, which works with most Motorola cellular phone models, connects to any corded or cordless phone to allow users to conveniently make and receive calls from their home or office phone while using their cellular service.

„Today, cellular service is affordable enough to allow users to treat their cellular phone as a replacement for their long distance carrier or even to replace their regular phone line,“ said Nancy Juarbe, Marketing Director at WHP Wireless. „With Cellsocket, users can make the most of the great deals available from cellular phone carriers, such as free nights and weekend minutes, rollover minutes, or free long distance.“

Cellsocket can be used in two ways: as a secondary line or as a replacement to standard local telephone service. On a two-line phone system, Cellsocket allows users to create a dedicated cell phone line on the second line while maintaining standard wireline service on the first line. Users can also opt to disconnect local phone service and then plug Cellsocket directly into any wall jack. Once installed, Cellsocket allows users to receive their cellular calls on any standard or wireless telephone handset for increased comfort and convenience.

Cellsocket features an external antenna that boosts the cell phones existing signal by at least two bars in order to provide optimal signal quality from wherever the user is—inside a building, at home, or on a boat or RV. The built-in battery charger keeps the cell phone battery fully charged even while users are receiving calls through their wireless service.

Cellsocket is currently compatible with all Motorola V120, V60 and T720 cell phones with new models soon to be released. Motorola cellular phones are supported by a variety of cell service providers, including AllTel Wireless, AT&T Wireless, Cingular Wireless, Cricket Wireless, Qwest Wireless, T-Mobile Wireless, TracFone Wireless, US Cellular Wireless, and Verizon Wireless. Cellsocket, which includes an antenna, a 6-inch telephone cord and a power source, is priced at $139.99. It is available through WHP’s Web site, as well as from a number of distributors

For more information on WHP Wireless or any of its products, contact the company at (631) 961–8970 or visit the company’s Web site at [ >>> ]

(Bloomberg) Sprint Corp., the No. 4 U.S. mobile- phone company, said its customers will get access to 2,300 public wireless Internet connections run by SBC Communications Inc.

The accord boosts by 75 percent the number of wireless fidelity, or Wi-Fi, sites available in coffee shops and other public places to Sprint customers, said Wes Dittmer, head of Sprint’s Wi-Fi unit. SBC users can browse the Web and view files at five Sprint locales. He declined to disclose financial terms.

U.S. Wi-Fi sales may surge to more than $1.5 billion a year by 2008 from $33 million this year, said Pyramid Research, helping phone carriers compensate for a slump in wire-line services. Second-quarter sales of local calling, the main business at San Antonio-based SBC, dropped 6.5 percent. Sprint’s long-distance sales fell 6.6 percent.

``It’s an addicting habit to get into, being able to be wireless and move at that fast a pace,’’ said Dittmer in an interview.

Communications companies make Wi-Fi available at so-called hot spots mainly in public locations to cater to business travelers who need access to networks or the Internet outside the home or office. At least 10,000 hot spots will be available to Sprint’s consumer and corporate customers by 2005 through additional agreements Dittmer declined to detail.

Sprint sells unlimited Wi-Fi service for $50 a month.

Shares of Overland Park, Kansas-based Sprint, also the third- largest U.S. long-distance operator, rose 7 cents to $19.42 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading yesterday. SBC, the nation’s No. 2 local carrier, rose 5 cents to $25.74.

Wi-Fi Access

SBC clients will have access from laptops and handheld devices to more than 20,000 hot spots by the end of 2006, the company said in a joint statement with Sprint. SBC said it has about 2,700 hot spots in hotels, airports, coffee shops and United Parcel Service Inc. stores.

Sprint locations available to SBC under the agreement are in the international airports of Salt Lake City, Kansas City, Missouri, and Louisville, Kentucky; the Addison, Texas, convention center; and a shopping center in Tyson’s Corner, Virginia.

The agreement will take effect in the fourth quarter, said SBC spokesman Michael Coe.

Most of the 3,000 hot spots now available to Sprint users came through agreements with companies including AT&T Wireless Services Inc. Sprint and AT&T Wireless, the nation’s third- biggest cellular carrier, agreed in April to share Wi-Fi hot spots in five airports.

AT&T Wireless Lowers Roaming Prices for Europe’s Hottest Summer Destinations
Company Also Announces Savings for Customers Who Call Abroad from the U.S.

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- A new promotion is letting summer travelers to Europe enjoy all-time low prices when they stay in touch using AT&T Wireless (NYSE: AWE — News).

Customers enrolled in AT&T Wireless’ Discounted International Roaming plan can now talk on their wireless phones for just $.89 per minute while in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland -- an additional $.10 per-minute reduction off the plan’s already discounted pricing and a $.40 per-minute savings for customers not already enrolled in the plan. The $.89 per-minute rate also applies to calls made or received in Greece -- also a substantial $.40 per-minute reduction off the usual rate.

«AT&T Wireless makes it easy and affordable for travelers to stay in touch, whether they’re visiting Big Ben, the summer Olympics, or points in- between,» said Dave Albright, vice president for international marketing at AT&T Wireless. «The hassles of hotel phones, payphones, and calling cards are a thing of the past.»

«We’re offering travelers to Europe a great price on phone calls, the simplicity of using their own wireless phone for those calls, and the convenience of staying reachable at their own phone number,» Albright added.

AT&T Wireless will waive one month’s service charge for customers who enroll in Discounted International Roaming before September 30, 2004, when this promotion expires. The monthly service charge for Discounted International Roaming is $5.99 and entitles customers to sharply reduced per- minute rates for calls placed and received while visiting more than 20 of the most-traveled European countries. Customers enrolled in the plan also receive discounted rates for calls made from AT&T Wireless’ owned network in the U.S. to other countries.

On a related note, another new promotion from AT&T Wireless offers additional savings to consumers who frequently call abroad from the U. S. AT&T Wireless will waive one month’s service charge of $3.99 for customers who enroll in the company’s Enhanced Discounted International Dialing plan before October 28, 2004. Enhanced Discounted International Dialing offers some of AT&T Wireless’ lowest rates ever on calls to more than 220 countries and territories from the company’s owned network in the U.S. — for example, a per- minute rate of $.06 for calls to the United Kingdom and Taiwan; $.07 per minute for calls to Japan, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, and Spain; and $.09 per minute for calls to Mexico and Hong Kong.

AT&T Wireless has long been a leader in international calling and roaming. In fact, the readers of Business Traveler magazine selected AT&T Wireless as provider of the «Best International Cell Phone Service» for three years in a row. AT&T Wireless customers with a compatible GSM/GPRS phone can place voice calls in more than 140 countries and access data services, such as email and picture messaging, in more than 60 countries. The company also offers dedicated round-the-clock support for customers who are abroad and have questions about placing international calls.

Customers can sign up for Discounted International Roaming by calling 866- 293–4634. They can sign up for Enhanced Discounted International Dialing by calling 800–888–7600 or 611 from their AT&T Wireless phone. Consumers can also enroll in either plan at their local AT&T Wireless store and find further information about the company’s international services at [ >>> ]

Note: As with domestic wireless calls, customers use airtime when calling to or from international locations. If a customer calls abroad while roaming in the U.S., roaming charges may also apply. In addition, certain calls to wireless devices abroad may incur a per-minute surcharge. After the Discounted International Roaming promotion expires on September 30, 2004, the usual low per-minute roaming rates will apply.

About AT&T Wireless

AT&T Wireless (NYSE: AWE — News) is the second-largest wireless carrier, based on revenues, in the United States. With 21.737 million subscribers as of June 30, 2004, and revenues of more than $16.8 billion over the past four quarters, AT&T Wireless delivers advanced high-quality mobile wireless communications services, voice and data, to businesses and consumers, in the U.S. and internationally.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements’’ which are based on management’s beliefs as well as on a number of assumptions concerning future events made by management with information that is currently available to management. Forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, management’s expectations regarding: our future financial and operating performance and financial condition, including the company’s outlook for the fiscal year 2004 and subsequent periods; the outcome of our pending transaction with Cingular; subscriber growth; industry conditions; the strength of our balance sheet; our liquidity and needs for additional financing; and our ability to increase revenue, margins and operating free cash flow.

Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on such forward-looking statements, which are not a guarantee of performance and are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside AT&T Wireless’ control, that could cause actual results to differ materially from such statements. Without limitation these factors include: the risks associated with the implementation of our technology migration strategy, uncertainty concerning the effects of our pending transaction with Cingular, our ability to continue to reduce costs and increase the efficiency of our distribution channels, the potential competitive impacts of industry consolidation or alternative technologies, potential impacts on revenue and ARPU from competitive pricing and slowing penetration in the wireless industry, the effects of vigorous competition in the markets in which we operate, the risk of decreased consumer spending due to softening economic conditions, acts of terrorism, and consumer response to new service offerings.

For a more detailed description of the factors that could cause such a difference, please see AT&T Wireless’ filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the information under the heading «Additional Factors That May Affect Our Business, Future Operating Results and Financial Condition» and «Forward Looking Statements» in its quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed on August 6, 2004.

Sprint Corp., owner of the fourth- largest U.S. wireless-phone service, said it will offer partial refunds to new corporate customers for poor call service.

New wireless contracts will promise refunds of as much as 30 percent to corporate customers if Sprint’s nationwide network has too many dropped or failed calls during a month, the Overland Park, Kansas-based company said in a statement. Customers must use a Web site to monitor Sprint’s performance.

Sprint is the first U.S. wireless carrier to give a service guarantee to all of its business customers, said Eugene Signorini, an analyst at Boston-based researcher Yankee Group. The move will help Sprint, which Consumer Reports magazine last year ranked near the bottom among U.S. carriers for service performance, improve the reputation of its network quality.

``It indicates that Sprint is serious about delivering enterprise-class wireless offerings,’’ Signorini said. ``Sprint, by being the leader out there, will also be able to set the bar where they want it to be.’’

Customers can request a 10 percent refund of monthly charges for each of three problems: if more than 2 percent of calls made within Sprint’s coverage area don’t connect; if more than 2 percent of completed calls are involuntarily disconnected; and if Sprint’s network is not running 99.9 percent of the time.

Shares of Sprint rose 10 cents to $18.08 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading Friday. The shares have risen 10 percent this year.

Network Performance

The measures are based on the performance of Sprint’s nationwide network, not on any one customer’s experience, said Vicki Warker, a vice president in Sprint’s business solutions unit. Customers can check a Web site each month to view Sprint’s network performance and request a refund if it failed.

``Business customers would prefer that we have a high- quality network than to get their money back,’’ Warker said.

Sprint’s PCS wireless unit had the second-highest number of complaints per subscriber among the six-largest U.S. wireless carriers last year, according to U. S. Federal Communications Commission figures compiled by Consumers Union, which publishes Consumer Reports magazine. AT&T Wireless Services Inc. had the most.

Sprint ranked lowest or second-lowest in terms of customer satisfaction in 10 of 12 U.S. cities, according to a survey of 31,000 subscribers conducted last year by Consumer Reports.

Sprint said it spent $667 million during the second quarter to improve call quality on its wireless network, a 25 percent increase in spending from a year earlier.

Revenue in the PCS wireless unit, which accounts for more than half of Sprint’s sales, rose 17 percent to $3.61 billion as Sprint added 897,000 wireless subscribers in the quarter. Its long-distance revenue declined 6.6 percent to $1.87 billion.

BOCA RATON, Fla. (Business Wire) Airspan Networks, Inc. (Nasdaq:AIRN), a leading worldwide provider of broadband fixed wireless DSL networks, announced today that it has extended the supply agreement signed with Dedicado of Uruguay in July 2003. Under that contract, Dedicado became one of the first carriers deploying Airspan’s AS4020 integrated voice and high-speed data communications systems to provide always-on, high-speed Internet access and traditional voice services in the city of Montevideo. Dedicado originally selected Airspan’s wireless DSL technology to overlay an existing network built by competitor, Alvarion.

The original network has operated successfully since December 2003, and demand for its services now outstrips its capacity. Under the contract extension, Airspan will supply additional AS4020, WipLL and WiMAX equipment for a significant network expansion, to enable Dedicado to serve up to 20,000 subscribers with a mix of circuit-switched voice services, always-on, high-speed Internet access and voice-over-IP connections. The contract extension requires the immediate delivery of AS4020 customer premise terminals and WipLL terminals. This equipment will serve the rapidly expanding Dedicado customer base. Additional deliveries throughout 2004 will bring the total number of Airspan customer premise units to approximately 10,000 by year end. WiMAX infrastructure and customer terminals will be delivered in 2005.

Dedicado, a private competitive local exchange carrier offering data, Internet, Local Telephony with Airspan and Ericsson switching, international long distance services and VPN, owns the only 3.5GHz spectrum license in Uruguay and services a greater share of the local data market than incumbent telephone service provider, ANTEL. The company has a market share of 50% of last mile connections.

Arturo Vargas, President and CEO of Dedicado, states: «We have evaluated the range of suppliers for broadband wireless equipment and have concluded that Airspan has the optimum mix of existing products and a roadmap to meet our needs. We have been pleased with the performance of the extensive AS4020 network installed so far, and we look forward to an aggressive expansion in the number of subscribers as we expand our focus beyond the business market. Airspan’s leadership in WiMAX development coupled with its ability to deliver current product has been paramount in our decision process to expand our network.»

«Airspan is very pleased to expand its relationship with Dedicado, already one of our largest existing customers in Latin America,» said Eric Stonestrom, President and CEO of Airspan Networks Inc. «We anticipate that the attractive economics of our product range across the wide base of Dedicado customers will enable Dedicado to grow its market share substantially. We are also pleased to be selected as the WiMAX vendor for the network.»