Verizon Invests $91 Million to Upgrade Wireline Telephone Network in Hawaii

HONOLULU -- Verizon Hawaii invested $91 million last year to expand the availability of advanced services such as digital subscriber line (DSL) and calling features such as Call Intercept, and increase the reliability of its wireline telecommunications network.

"We continue to invest in our infrastructure to maintain service excellence and give more people the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of high-speed Internet access," said Warren Haruki, president of Verizon Hawaii. "We help Verizon customers make progress every day, as we upgrade our network and offer new services and packages of local, long-distance and broadband services."

Since December 2001, Verizon has installed more than 2,000 additional miles of fiber-optic cable on Oahu, Maui, and the Big Island. Fiber-optic systems use hair-thin glass strands and digital technology to deliver high-capacity, high-speed voice and data services. These self-healing fiber networks are more weather-resistant than copper cables, increasing reliability. Verizon Hawaii's network is 100 percent digital and includes more than 47,000 miles of fiber-optic cable. Verizon plans to install another 2,000 miles of fiber this year.

With its Hawaii investment, Verizon also continued to enhance its digital switching system -- designed for voice traffic -- by investing in technology that supports multi-media platforms, including data, video, and Internet Protocol (IP). IP divides a conversation or data stream into millions of pieces and assigns each an address. Each slice of conversation or data finds the most efficient route to its destination, where the pieces are reassembled in the proper order. IP is more efficient than circuit switched networks, providing companies with greater savings when transmitting voice or data.

In a survey of customers who had recent contact with Verizon Hawaii, 94 percent of residential consumers and nearly 85 percent of business customers rated Verizon's installation service as outstanding or very good. An independent firm conducts the survey monthly.

Other significant operational and customer service achievements include:
• Creation of an Advanced Intelligent Network (AIN) service, allowing Hawaii customers to dial 211 to reach Aloha United Way. Hawaii was the second state in the nation to offer 211 statewide.

• Introduction of ONE-BILL, which consolidates charges for Verizon's local, long-distance, wireless, DSL and optional services on one bill.

• Expansion of high-speed Internet access service, Verizon Online DSL, to 23 additional communities, including Haiku on Maui; Honokaa, Keaau, Keauhou and Kohala on the Big Island; and Makakilo, Waimanalo, Nanakuli and Waianae on Oahu.

• Reduction in the time it takes to install and repair DSL service.

Verizon, the nation's biggest spender on communications technology, plans to spend about $7.5 billion on capital projects in its nationwide wireline business this year alone, including continued investment in Hawaii.

Verizon Hawaii's investment will further expand the number of customers who are able to order its super-fast DSL service, which improves their Internet and telecommuting experience. Verizon plans to add more than 10 million new telephone lines to its 36 million lines throughout the U.S. that are now equipped with DSL, so that by year's end 80 percent of the company's lines will be able to carry the service.

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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