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With the Cingular and Former AT&T Wireless Networks Fully Combined, Customers Now Have Access to Nearly 45 Percent More Cell Sites ORLANDO, Fla., March 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Cingular Wireless customers in Jacksonville now have more bars in more places thanks to the integration of the Cingular Wireless and former AT&T Wireless networks. With both networks now fully combined into one, Cingular customers will have access to nearly 45 percent more cell sites in the Jacksonville area and should experience fewer dropped calls, improved call quality, new coverage where none existed before, and better in-building, in-car and pedestrian coverage. When Cingular and AT&T Wireless merged in October 2004, customers received a better experience immediately because they had access to more cell sites in more places through "home-on-home" roaming. Now, with the completion of the network integration in Jacksonville, the two networks can "talk" to each other, establishing the call through the closest cell site and passing the call seamlessly from site to site. Customers not only have access to more cell sites, but have all the cell sites in the Jacksonville area working together for them. "This is the single largest increase in coverage that our customers have ever experienced," said Dan Norman, VP/GM for Cingular's North Florida market, which covers southwest Florida across the state north to Panama City and just over the Georgia line. "Almost overnight our network was transformed, giving our customers access to more sites in more places." Planning and preparation for the network integration, which involved choosing the best cell sites from both networks, eliminating duplicate equipment, and combining technologies onto a common network, started a year ago. The actual integration of the two networks began January 31, 2006 and was completed by March 1, 2006. The network integration is part of a $360 million investment by the nation's largest wireless carrier in its Florida network. The investment also includes the addition of portable and permanent generators, and the deployment of a third generation (3G) high-speed broadband wireless network this summer that will allow customers to access information and applications at broadband speeds in the office, on the road or at home. The service - via laptop data cards or 3G-compatible phones -- provides average mobile data connections between 400-700Kbps (kilobits per second) on the downlink and bursts to more than a megabit per second. Since 2005, Cingular has invested more than $435 million in its North Florida network alone. Network enhancements to date include the addition of key cell sites in the following Jacksonville areas: - Downtown Jacksonville; - The Jaguars' stadium; - Along U.S. 90, I-10, and U.S. 301; - Mayport; - Little Talbot Island; - Fort George Island; - The Hammock Beach resort area and in the northeastern area of Palm Coast in Flagler County; - The residential area of Orange Park; - The town of Live Oak Suwannee County; and - The Fernandina Airport; and - Southern Fernandina Beach and on the Amelia Island Parkway By the end of the first quarter of 2006, Cingular will have completed the AT&T Wireless network integration in more than 80 percent of its Southeast cities. Cingular also will launch its 3G wireless network technology in more than 20 Southeast cities this year. About Cingular Wireless Cingular Wireless is the largest wireless carrier in the United States, serving 54.1 million customers. Cingular, a joint venture between AT&T Inc., formerly SBC Communications Inc., (NYSE:T), and BellSouth Corporation (NYSE:BLS), has the largest digital voice and data network in the nation -- the ALLOVER(TM) network -- and the largest mobile-to-mobile community of any national wireless carrier. Cingular is a leader in third generation wireless technology. Its 3G network is the first widely available service in the world to use HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) technology. Cingular is the only U.S. wireless carrier to offer Rollover(R), the wireless plan that lets customers keep their unused monthly minutes. Details of the company are available at http://www.cingular.com/. Get Cingular Wireless press releases e-mailed to you automatically. Sign up at http://cingular.mediaroom.com/ DATASOURCE: Cingular Wireless CONTACT: Kelly Starling of Cingular Wireless, +1-561-301-1414, or Web site: http://www.cingular.com/ http://cingular.mediaroom.com/

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