BLS Bellsouth Cp

Governor Ernie Fletcher Signs House Bill 627 connectkentucky salutes Governor Fletcher as he delivers on his promise to encourage rural broadband deployment and spur economic growth BOWLING GREEN, Ky., May 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Governor Ernie Fletcher's rural broadband initiative to deregulate broadband service in Kentucky passed the 2004 General Assembly and was signed into law today at the Capitol Building. The bill signing was applauded by connectkentucky steering committee members and national industry leaders in attendance. The expectation of greater expansion of broadband service to rural Kentucky has already begun, as BellSouth Corporation (NYSE:BLS) announced that the company is expanding deployment of its high-speed FastAccess(R) Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) Internet service to 59 more Kentucky communities between now and the end of 2004. "Broadband is essential to building a more competitive local economy," stated Governor Ernie Fletcher. "In this bipartisan effort to encourage broadband expansion, we are giving rural communities greater opportunity for economic development." "This new legislation is providing a great leap forward for high-speed Internet service in Kentucky," said Eddy Roberts, President of BellSouth Kentucky and connectkentucky steering committee member. "The leadership of Governor Fletcher and of the General Assembly has been bold. The governor and the legislature have created a positive investment climate that's already stimulating Kentucky broadband spending." CITE (Center for Information Technology Enterprise), the administrator of connectkentucky continues to encourage collaborative partnerships and the investment in the technological infrastructure and network of Kentucky. Excellence in Innovation within the Commonwealth has been nationally recognized, through the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration (EDA) on behalf of CITE's work within Kentucky. The official award ceremony will be held, Wednesday, June 9, during the EDA National Conference. "Through strong leadership and public-private partnerships between State government, private industry, and universities, broadband connectivity available to all Kentuckians will become a reality and improve upon the quality of life in our region through education, research and public service," added John Hall, connectkentucky Co-Chair and retired Chairman and CEO of Ashland Inc. connectkentucky is a public-private partnership between Kentucky's Office for the New Economy, private industry, Kentucky's universities and CITE (the Center for Information Technology Enterprise, Inc.). connectkentucky's industry partners currently include: Alltel, Bank One, Belcan, Bellsouth, Cincinnati Bell, Commonwealth Industries, CSX, Humana, Insight Communications, Leapfrog, Nortel Networks, Qwest, Toyota, USEC, and Yum! Brands. CITE, (pronounced "sight"), is a contract research and consulting enterprise that provides information technology strategy and policy planning to business, government, and educational institutions around the globe. CITE offices provide state-of-the-art video conferencing and collaboration technology value-added services. For more information, go to http://www.citeinc.com/ . BellSouth Corporation is a Fortune 100 communications company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. BellSouth provides comprehensive and innovative packages of voice and data telecommunications services for residential and business customers. More information about BellSouth is available online at http://www.bellsouth.com/ . DATASOURCE: Center for Information Technology Enterprise, Inc CONTACT: Susan Dennis of CITE, +1-270-781-4320, ext. 27, or Web site: http://www.citeinc.com/ http://www.bellsouth.com/

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