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Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile Expands Digital Network
DigitalChoiceSM Service Available In
Philadelphia Area
March 3, 1997
Media contacts: |
CTIA WIRELESS '97 San Francisco -- Bell Atlantic NYNEX
Mobile
announced today that it has launched the wireless industry's most
sophisticated digital cellular phone service in the greater
Philadelphia area. The new offering, called DigitalChoicesm, uses
13-kilobit Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) to provide exceptional
voice quality and enhanced security.
The company previously deployed its DigitalChoice service
in
Washington/Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Charlotte, NC, and Trenton, NJ, and
plans to introduce service in its remaining markets, where advanced
digital features are already available on its analog network, by
mid-year. Customers benefit from having wireless coverage virtually
anywhere in North America since Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile's digital
phones will work on both digital and analog networks.
Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile leads the cellular industry in deploying
13-kilobit CDMA digital service, the next generation in wireless
technology. The company launched the nation's first 13-kilobit CDMA
network in Trenton, NJ, in March, 1996. Research concludes that the
13-kilobit version of CDMA service provides the clearest voice quality
of any wireless technology, and the closest to landline voice quality,
virtually eliminating static and crosstalk. The CDMA 13-kilobit
vocoder uses a unique noise suppression technique that emphasizes or
improves voice clarity, while greatly reducing background noise.
Customers who subscribe to DigitalChoice service will receive
- free Caller ID;
- free voice mail with message indicator;
- free first minute of airtime on incoming calls within home
area; - free TalkDialsm, Bell Atlantic
NYNEX Mobile's exclusive
service, which allows customers to "dial" with their
voice; - Free Call Waiting, Call Forwarding, and Three-way Calling
- dramatically increased battery life;
- free fraud protection;
- and optional text messaging for an additional $12.99 a
month, or operator-assisted text messaging for $24.99 a
month.
The battery life for CDMA digital handheld phones is dramatically
improved when operating in digital mode, allowing as much as five
hours of talk time and 48 hours of standby time, compared with the
average analog phone which provides up to two hours of talk time and
18 hours of standby time.
Voice privacy is greatly enhanced with CDMA technology. Since each
call is coded in one of over four trillion codes, eavesdropping is
virtually impossible when operating in digital mode. Commercial
scanning equipment cannot intercept CDMA digital voice communication.
The company is the first provider to offer digital service in
Philadelphia. Digital coverage is available in the major metropolitan
area in and around Philadelphia, including Philadelphia county and
large portions of the surrounding counties of PA, NJ and DE. There is
no activation fee for DigitalChoice, and customers can sign up for
monthly or one-year subscriptions. Price plans begin at $24.99 for
monthly access.
The company is selling handheld Qualcomm digital phones in its Bell
Atlantic NYNEX Mobile Communications Stores the Philadelphia area for
$299.99. For added protection and convenience, the phone is equipped
with Authentication technology, which guards against cellular cloning,
while eliminating the need for a PIN (personal identification
number)in the customer's home area.
"Customers judge wireless carriers by the quality of their wireless
phone calls," said Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile Vice President and
Chief
Technology Officer Dick Lynch . "The market place will soon conclude
that DigitalChoice CDMA service is the best wireless technology when
compared to other digital services and even landline service. No other
digital technology offers the voice clarity that 13-kilobit CDMA
does."
Lucent Technologies of Murray Hill, NJ, is providing network
infrastructure equipment for the new service in Philadelphia.
Qualcomm Personal Electronics of San Diego is providing the CDMA
digital phones.
Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile is the
largest wireless service provider on
the East Coast and the second largest in the United States. The
company owns and operates the most extensive network in the east,
covering 111,000 square miles, and the largest chain of wireless
retail outlets, offering a full range of personal communications
services including voice, data and paging. Based in Bedminster, NJ,
the company has more than four million customers and 6,500 employees
in the Northeast, mid-Atlantic, Southeast, and, through a separate
subsidiary, in the Southwest. The company was formed in July, 1995 by
combining Bell Atlantic Mobile's and NYNEX Mobile's cellular
operations. For more information about the company, visit Bell
Atlantic NYNEX Mobile's Home Page at www.banm.com.
EDITOR'S NOTE:
Herschel Shosteck Associates is currently using Bell Atlantic NYNEX
Mobile's CDMA DigitalChoice service in the Washington/Baltimore
Market. For comments please contact Jane Zweig at 301/589-2259.
####