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Grupo Iusacell Signs Mexico's First "Fiber-Swap" Agreement
March 11, 1998
| Media contacts: | Steve Fleischer |
[NYSE:CEL] today announced it signed Mexico's first "fiber-swap"
agreement with another long distance provider, Marcatel SA, allowing
the two companies to serve more of the market more efficiently. While
financial terms were not disclosed, the agreement allows Marcatel to
sell capacity on its fiber-optic network to Iusacell in return for a
reciprocal arrangement. Each company will be able to increase its
geographic coverage in Mexico without building redundant network
infrastructure.
The agreement gives both companies access to a more than 1,300-mile
fiber-optic network, dramatically increasing the number of communities
each company can serve.
The arrangement is designed to support the Mexican government's goal
of creating an efficient, competitive telecommunications marketplace.
"Grupo Iusacell reiterates its commitment to expanding its services to
the greatest number of communities in the most efficient way possible
and to delivering the quality that characterizes products throughout
our entire business," said Iusacell President and General Director
Fulvio del Valle. "Iusacell is not only committed to delivering the
highest quality telecommunications services available in the Mexican
market, but also to offering the most competitive prices."
Iusacell is a leading independent communications company in Mexico.
It provides cellular service in four of the nine regions in the
central portion of Mexico, including Mexico City. The company covers
66 million potential customers, or 70 percent of the country's
population.
Bell Atlantic owns 42 percent of Iusacell's capital stock and has had
management control since February 1997.
Bell Atlantic - formed through the merger of Bell Atlantic and NYNEX
- is at the forefront of the new communications and information
industry. With 40.5 million telephone access lines and six million
wireless customers worldwide, Bell Atlantic companies are premier
providers of advanced wireline voice and data services, market leaders
in wireless services and the world's largest publishers of directory
information. Bell Atlantic companies are also among the world's
largest investors in high-growth global communications markets, with
operations and investments in 21 countries.
