New Verizon Avenue Cordless-Cellular Phone Offers Customers Convenience and Reliability

NEW ORLEANS - Phone jugglers can soon put one phone down with Verizon Avenue's new hybrid cordless-cellular phone.

Verizon Avenue today will unveil its prototype cordless-at-home and cellular-on-the-go phone -- and a new, expanded service bundle that includes free wireless Internet access in common areas in multiple-dwelling units - at the National Apartment Association meeting here.

The new phone, named Verizon ONE, will be rolled out early next year, state-by-state, exclusively to residents of selected multi-family communities where Verizon Avenue offers bundled telecommunications services. The company provides local, long-distance and high-speed Internet access service bundles to multi-dwelling apartment, high-rise and condominium residents.

"We're delivering cutting-edge technology that both simplifies residents' lives and provides multifamily community management with a competitive edge," said Andrea Custis, president and chief operating officer for Verizon Avenue. "Our customers are early adopters who are technology savvy. They prefer dealing with one company for all their telecommunications and high-speed Internet needs, including mobile access."

Beginning Oct. 1, Verizon Avenue's new bundled telecommunications service plan will be available with these features:

• High-speed Internet access up to a maximum connection speed of 1.5 Mbps (megabits per second)

• Lower rates for three and five-year bundled telecommunications contracts

• Up to six free wi-fi (wireless fidelity) hot spots in multifamily common community areas

• Six e-mail addresses and 20 MB (megabytes) of storage

Wi-fi "hot spots" provide a wireless high-speed connection to the Internet for subscribers who have a wireless-enabled laptop or PDA. Common areas where free Verizon Avenue- provided hot spots could be installed include the manager's office, lobby areas, clubhouses, pool areas, and health clubs.

Verizon ONE is two phones in one, so there's only one number to remember and one voice mailbox to check since the phone travels with its owner. The phone comes with eight special calling features such as Caller ID and voice mail.

According to Custis, residents appreciate the "plug and play" ability of Verizon Avenue's services. Apartments and condominium homes are already wired, and residents can go online the day they move in.

"Providing technology-based amenities that residents want are the key to attracting and keeping residents in today's ultra-competitive, multi-family communities," Custis said.

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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