NWRA, NextWave Agree To Promote PCS Resale Opportunities
PR Newswire - May 16, 1997 11:48
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WASHINGTON, May 16 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Wireless Resellers
Association (NWRA) and NextWave Telecom Inc. have entered into a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) to promote PCS (Personal Communications Service) resale
opportunities. NextWave has presented an offer whereby NWRA member resellers
would be eligible to purchase PCS minutes at a flat rate. The resale plan
designed for NWRA includes no monthly access charges, and roaming fees would
not apply to resellers operating in NextWave's PCS markets.
"NWRA's Board of Directors has unanimously approved the MOU for the PCS
partnership agreement with NextWave," said David Gusky, NWRA's Executive
Director. "The agreement presents new opportunities for our member resellers
and will foster competition in the wireless industry. Throughout its history,
NWRA has never wavered from the belief that a healthy resale market in
wireless services will benefit consumers, carriers, and scores of small
businesses, which see resale as the only practical means of entering the
telecommunications marketplace," Mr. Gusky added. "NWRA believes NextWave's
business proposition furthers that objective."
As one of three national wireless franchises in the U.S., NextWave will
offer resellers access to an all-digital nationwide wireless network. With a
single contract, an NWRA member will have access to the 10 largest markets
(New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Houston,
Detroit, Dallas, Washington DC, Boston) and 28 of the 30 largest markets.
NextWave's all-digital network will protect NWRA members from fraud and
cloning and open up a new range of services including Caller ID, short
messaging service, integrated voice mail, Internet, and other practical data
applications. In addition, NextWave intends to support a choice of long
distance carriers rather than mandating the bundling of a specific long
distance brand to gain access to wireless services. This is significant
because there is no equal access requirement for wireless carriers.
"NWRA members will not encounter any channel, brand, or distribution
conflict by working with NextWave, as the company's entire focus is to ensure
that our network, billing, provisioning, and customer service meet the needs
of our wholesale customers," said James Madsen, Senior Vice President,
Business Development for NextWave.
The National Wireless Resellers Association was founded in 1987 to promote
competition in the wireless industry by fostering a better business climate
for wireless resale. The Washington, D.C.-based trade group represents
resellers and wireless distributors. NWRA is the chief advocate for wireless
resellers and serves as the leading source of information for this segment of
the industry.
NextWave Telecom Inc. (www.nextwavetel.com) is building an all-digital
nationwide PCS network. NextWave's strategic mission is to provide low-cost,
high quality PCS by offering airtime to other carriers and resellers on a
wholesale basis. Through its participation in FCC-sponsored PCS auctions,
NextWave already has been granted 88 PCS licenses representing approximately
150 million POPs (potential customers). Another seven licenses, representing
13 million POPs, are currently pending before the FCC. In total, NextWave has
access to 163 million POPs, which comprise all top 10 U.S. markets, 28 of the
top 30 markets, and 40 of the top 50 markets.
NextWave's business partners include more than 70 major consumer
electronics and network equipment manufacturers, telecommunications service
providers, electric utilities, and financial institutions, including Bankers
Trust, Triumph Capital, Trust Company of the West, Kingdon Capital, Och-Ziff,
CIBC, Prudential Securities, MCI, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT), Sony,
PECO Energy, LGIC, KEPCO, Allen Group, and QUALCOMM, among others.
SOURCE NextWave Telecom, Inc.
CONTACT: David Gusky of NWRA, 202-429-2014 or Jennifer Walsh of
NextWave, 202-661-2085 |
