US Unwired
Inc. Announces Availability of Wireless Communications
Service in Pensacola, Florida
Tuesday October 10, 8:51 am Eastern
Time
Press Release
LAKE CHARLES, La.--(BUSINESS
WIRE)--Oct. 10, 2000--US Unwired Inc. (Nasdaq/NM:UNWR
- news),
a Sprint PCS (NYSE:PCS
- news)
Network Partner, recently launched advanced Sprint PCS
wireless personal communications services (PCS) in
Pensacola, Florida. In addition, the company also
launched service in Florence and Selma, Alabama, as
well as in two counties in the Nashville, Tennessee,
basic trading area. As a result, US Unwired now has
the opportunity to offer Sprint PCS Products and
Services to over 743,000 additional residents.
Including these new markets, US Unwired serves 24
markets, 59% of its total service area.
``These are key markets in our
strategy to connect our territory and offer seamless
digital wireless service in Sprint's all-digital, all
PCS nationwide network by March 2001,'' said Robert
Piper, US Unwired's president and chief executive
officer. ``We are both on-schedule and on-budget as we
continue to complete construction of our network in
order to achieve our goal of expanding our network
coverage to 6.1 million total residents by year end.''
Consumers will be able to purchase
handsets and service plans from US Unwired's retail
stores, as well as national, regional, and local
retailers such as Radio Shack, Best Buy, and Kmart.
In addition, US Unwired has opened
the following markets to roaming traffic: Huntsville,
and Tuscaloosa, Alabama; and Fort Walton Beach and
Panama City, Florida. Currently, the company is
optimizing the network in these markets and preparing
for the retail and third-party launch. US Unwired
anticipates that it will begin selling Sprint PCS
service to the 1.2 million residents in these areas
before the holiday season.
The recently opened markets include
approximately 700 highway miles including portions of
Interstates 10, 20, 59 and 565. US Unwired will
receive additional revenue from Sprint PCS when Sprint
PCS customers travel into the US Unwired service area
and make calls on US Unwired's portion of the Sprint
PCS nationwide network. In addition, the Company will
receive roaming revenue from other wireless carriers
with whom Sprint PCS has roaming agreements. US
Unwired and Sprint PCS settle the exchange of revenue
under their management agreement. There are no
additional charges for Sprint PCS customers who have
selected one of the national Sprint PCS Free &
Clear Plans that feature no roaming charges anywhere
on the Sprint PCS nationwide wireless network.
US Unwired, based in Lake Charles,
LA, holds direct or indirect ownership interests in
three Sprint PCS Network Partners: Louisiana Unwired,
Texas Unwired and Gulf Coast Wireless. Through
Louisiana and Texas Unwired, US Unwired is authorized
to build, operate and manage a network that offers 100
percent digital, 100 percent Sprint PCS Wireless
Service in 41 markets. US Unwired's Sprint PCS service
territory includes portions of southern Tennessee,
east Texas, southern Arkansas, Alabama, Mississippi,
the Florida panhandle and significant portions of
Louisiana. In addition, US Unwired provides cellular
and paging services in southwest Louisiana. For more
information on US Unwired and its products and
services, visit the company's web site at http://www.usunwired.com.
Sprint PCS operates the largest 100
percent digital, 100 percent PCS nationwide wireless
network in the United States, already serving the
majority of the nation's metropolitan areas including
more than 4,000 cities and communities across the
country. Sprint PCS has licensed PCS coverage of
nearly 270 million people in all 50 states, Puerto
Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. For more
information, visit the Sprint PCS web site at http://www.sprintpcs.com.
Sprint PCS is a wholly-owned tracking group of Sprint
Corporation trading on the NYSE under the symbol
``PCS.''
Sprint is a global communications
company at the forefront of integrating long-distance,
local and wireless communications services, and a
large carrier of Internet traffic. Sprint built and
operates the United States' first nationwide
all-digital, fiber-optic network and is a leader in
advanced data communications services. Sprint has $20
billion in annual revenues and serves more than 20
million business and residential customers.
Statements herein include
forward-looking statements about our current and
future business, operations and other matters. They
often include the words ``believes,'' ``expects,''
``plans,'' ``anticipates,'' ``intends,'' ``projects''
or similar words. These statements speak only as of
the date made, are not guarantees of future
performance, and involve known and unknown risks and
other factors that could cause actual results to be
materially different from any future results expressed
or implied by them. Some of these factors, many of
which are outside our control, include: our dependence
on our affiliation with Sprint PCS, availability of
infrastructure and subscriber equipment, availability
at acceptable terms of sufficient funds to pay for our
business plan, competition, changes in labor,
equipment and capital costs, ability to obtain
required regulatory approvals, market and technology
changes, ability to comply with our credit agreements,
changes in management, ability to attract and retain
qualified employees, future acquisitions, and general
economic and business conditions. One should not rely
too heavily on any forward-looking statement. For a
detailed discussion of these and other cautionary
statements and factors, see US Unwired's filings with
the SEC, especially in the ``risk factors'' section of
its Form S-1, in Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June
30, 2000, and in subsequent filings with the SEC.
Contact:
US
Unwired Inc., Lake Charles
Ed Moise, 337/310-3500
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