[ICG Announces Nationwide IP Telephony]
5.9 Cents A Minute Service Available In More Markets Than Any Other IP Telephony Offering
ENGLEWOOD, Colo., March 11 /PRNewswire/ -- ICG Communications, Inc. today announced its nationwide Internet Protocol (IP) Telephony service for 5.9 Cents per minute in 166 cities across the United States. Through the acquisition of NETCOM On-Line Communication Services (Netcom), one of the nation's largest Internet Service Providers (ISP), earlier this year, ICG Communications has created a broadband data network reaching the nation's top markets, enabling it to offer high-quality IP telephony and data services.
"The recent acquisition of Netcom has enabled ICG to take the lead on IP telephony and we will be the first company in the nation to commercially deploy IP telephony equipment in 166 cities across the country," said J. Shelby Bryan, president and CEO of ICG Communications. "We will offer our business and residential customers a state-of-the-art package that includes long distance service over ICG's IP network for under six cents a minute," Bryan said.
Bryan stated that, "ICG's IP service will be of the highest quality and will be bundled with ICG's local dial tone, Internet and data services in many areas." Bryan added, "ICG is unique in the IP telephony field not only because we have a comprehensive nationwide network to deploy the service, but also because ICG has the voice technology and operations support systems expertise to ensure this service is successfully deployed."
ICG is planning a rapid deployment of its IP telephony service to 166 U.S. markets by year-end, which will include other IP Services such as virtual private networks and IP facsimile. The company's IP service will cover ninety percent of the U.S. long distance market and be offered in nearly seven times the number of cities as any competitor. ICG will offer its IP long distance for 5.9 cents a minute for calls originating and terminating on its IP network and 7.2 cents for calls originating on its IP network but terminating elsewhere. These rates apply to both residential and business customers. ICG will be partnering with industry leaders such as Lucent and Cisco to deploy aggressively the state-of-the-art IP telephony equipment during 1998. The acquisition of Netcom gives ICG one of the nation's largest ISP footprints (238 points of presence nationwide) to offer its services. ICG and Netcom will begin to market long distance and IP service to their business customers as well as their 500,000 dial-up customers beginning in the second quarter of 1998. ICG's IP telephony service will be sold over the Internet and through its inbound telemarketing center. ICG will control the quality of its IP calls by utilizing its national control center in Englewood, Colorado.
SOURCE ICG Communications, Inc.
-0- 03/11/98
/CONTACT: Alison Schwartz, ICG Public Relations Manager, Alison_Schwartz@icgcomm.com, 303-626-3477, or Steve Smith, Director of Investor Relations, 303-414-5350, both of ICG Communications, Inc./
/Web site: icgcomm.com |
