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-- Southeast Building Materials Supplier Links 18 Locations with Managed VPN Service -- ATLANTA, Aug. 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Choo Choo Build-It Mart is one of the fastest growing and most innovative building materials companies in the Southeast. Part of its success is based on the reliable data services from BellSouth (NYSE:BLS) that link 18 locations for effective communication. The building materials company, owned by VNS Corporation and headquartered in Vidalia, Ga., has recently expanded to serve Florida and South Carolina markets as well. "VNS has helped contractors build houses for over 40 years and BellSouth has a strong history of enabling businesses like us to build communication networks to support operations," said Bob Dixon, Chief Information Officer, VNS Corporation. "We make a good team." VNS's multi-location network was originally configured by patching together traditional Frame Relay service and self-managed VPN networks. With rising security concerns and costs associated with managing a complex network, the company sought a solution that would provide additional bandwidth, integration and flexibility for network growth in the future. The new, more cost effective BellSouth solution, known as BellSouth(R) Managed Network VPN Service, links each location with high-speed connections (using a combination of DSL and Frame Relay transport) to VNS's corporate network. In addition, dedicated Internet access is shared by the headquarters location and each store throughout the network. The Internet access is fully protected by a network-based firewall managed by BellSouth. Store managers and the headquarters employees also have the ability to access the corporate network remotely, from home or while traveling. This new network design, with added features, comes at a price that is less than what VNS was paying previously. "Much like VNS works with contractors to provide quality materials to meet building specifications on custom structures, BellSouth must listen intently to the needs of our customers and design solutions that address those needs," said Fred Shaftman, president, BellSouth Business. "BellSouth Managed Network VPN provides a flexible, secure data network foundation that will effectively support the operational needs of the business for years to come." Many businesses have the challenge of linking multiple office locations to corporate resources -- each location with its own unique access type requirements. The growth of telecommuters and business travelers that need access to critical company information has also created additional complexities for corporate networks. In the past, companies have had to self- integrate and manage these disparate networks to allow branch locations and remote workers to communicate with one another and headquarters locations. BellSouth Managed Network VPN Service enables customers to shift the responsibility for network integration and configuration of their wide area networks (WANs) to the service provider. The VPN Service is transported over BellSouth's private IP backbone, which utilizes the security and flexibility of MPLS (Multi-Protocol Label Switching) to allow internetworking of multiple access methods (DSL, Ethernet, ATM, Frame Relay, and Private Line). BellSouth Network VPN customers include businesses of all sizes across industries such as retail, health care, education, manufacturing and financial services. For more information about BellSouth voice and data solutions for businesses, visit http://www.bellsouthlargebusiness.com/. About BellSouth Corporation BellSouth Corporation is a Fortune 100 communications company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. BellSouth has joint control and 40 percent ownership of Cingular Wireless, the nation's largest wireless voice and data provider with 51.6 million customers. Backed by award winning customer service, BellSouth offers the most comprehensive and innovative package of voice and data services available in the market. Through BellSouth Answers(R), residential and small business customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial-up and high-speed DSL Internet access, satellite television and Cingular(R) Wireless service. For businesses, BellSouth provides secure, reliable local and long distance voice and data networking solutions. BellSouth also offers online and directory advertising through BellSouth(R) RealPages.com(R) and The Real Yellow Pages(R). BellSouth believes that diversity and fostering an inclusive environment are critical in maintaining a competitive advantage in today's global marketplace. More information about BellSouth can be found at http://www.bellsouth.com/. DATASOURCE: BellSouth Corporation CONTACT: Todd Smith of BellSouth Corporation, +1-404-829-8723, or Web site: http://www.bellsouth.com/ http://www.bellsouthlargebusiness.com/ Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/095650.html

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