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Cingular Wireless Awarded Contract to Provide Wireless Priority Service for Improved Emergency Communications in Alabama and Northwest Florida Local emergency response personnel and community leaders to benefit from new service BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Nov. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Alabama and Northwest Florida are now among the areas in the nation to benefit from a program that will provide improved communications to emergency response personnel and community leaders. Cingular Wireless has been awarded a contract by the National Communications System (NCS) to provide Wireless Priority Service (WPS) to the country's authorized emergency response personnel. As part of that contract, Cingular has launched WPS throughout Alabama and Northwest Florida, as well as other select regions of the United States. The initial phase of WPS deployment (covering the top 25 markets in the U.S.) is complete for 2004. Total network deployment will be complete by the summer of 2005. WPS provides authorized Federal, State, and local government leaders and critical private sector leaders and decision makers with priority wireless service during times of emergency. In conjunction with the Government Emergency Telecommunications Service (GETS), WPS dramatically improves cellular call completion rates. In times of congestion, authorized users are moved to the front of the queue, greatly increasing their chances of call completion. At the same time, WPS is designed to have a negligible impact on everyday cellular users, providing priority service to vital decision makers without restricting the public's ability to gain access to those same networks. WPS does not enable users to preempt existing calls or to monopolize cellular services. "WPS is an extremely important tool to provide to key national security and emergency preparedness personnel during disaster and emergency situations," said Ron Cates, Cingular Wireless Executive Director of Network Operations - Alabama/Mississippi/Louisiana. "Cingular recognizes how vitally important WPS is to those who must direct well-coordinated emergency responses. Cingular's commitment is to improve homeland security through our deployment of WPS." Computer Sciences Corporation, the NCS's integration contractor for the Government Emergency Telecommunications Service and the Wireless Priority Service, was responsible for the acquisition of Cingular as a participating WPS provider. The National Communications System, part of the Department of Homeland Security's Information Analysis and Infrastructure Protection Directorate, consists of 23 Federal member departments and agencies and is responsible for ensuring the availability of a viable national security and emergency preparedness (NS/EP) communications infrastructure. In addition to enhancing the Alabama and Northwest Florida networks with WPS, Cingular recently announced that it has activated 90 new cell sites throughout this region, significantly enhancing GSM service for residents and travelers throughout the area. Cingular will add a total of 112 new cell sites to the Alabama and Northwest Florida networks before the end of the year. These enhancements are part of a one-year, $150 million network investment in the region that will further enhance Cingular's GSM network by improving call quality, adding capacity and extending the network's reach. Additional information regarding the NCS WPS program can be obtained on the NCS website at http://wps.ncs.gov/ . About Cingular Wireless Cingular Wireless is the largest wireless carrier in the United States, serving more than 46 million customers. Cingular, a joint venture between SBC Communications (NYSE:SBC) and BellSouth (NYSE:BLS), has the largest digital voice and data network in the nation. Cingular is the only U.S. wireless carrier to offer Rollover(SM), 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://www.cingular.com/newsroom . DATASOURCE: Cingular Wireless CONTACT: Calie Shackleford of Cingular Wireless, +1-615-221-3690, or mobile, +1-615-319-5599, or Web site: http://www.cingular.com/ http://www.cingular.com/newsroom http://wps.ncs.gov/

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