Yes, {is it a good time to note I've owned GST since last july, and added to my position all along?}
Company Press Release
SOURCE: GST Telecommunications, Inc.
GST Telecommunications Reports All Fourteen
Voice Switches Operational
Launches Local Phone Service in Los Angeles and Houston
VANCOUVER, Wash., March 30 /PRNewswire/ -- GST Telecommunications, Inc.
(Amex: GST - news) announced today the launch of local telephone service in Los Angeles
and Houston. With the rollout of local dial tone service in these cities, GST now provides
local phone service in 14 of the major markets it serves.
''We achieved our goal of bringing 14 class 4/5 voice switches into service by the end of
the first quarter,'' said John Warta, chairman and chief executive officer of GST. The
Company currently offers local dial tone services in San Francisco and the East Bay area,
Fresno, the Inland Empire, and the Central Coast region in California; Hawaii; Tucson and
Phoenix, Arizona; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Boise, Idaho; Spokane, Washington; and
Portland, Oregon. ''We expect to meet or exceed our targeted operational goals for the
year as well as the expectations of our customers and shareholders,'' added Warta.
''Los Angeles is our latest expansion into a tier one market and provides GST a strong and
robust presence in California, the number one telecom market in the U.S.,'' said Joseph A.
Basile, Jr., president and chief operating officer of GST. '' With all of our class 4/5 voice
switches operational, we will continue our focus on expanding into adjacent markets that
strengthen our position as the full-service alternative to the incumbent providers. Our
primary near-term objective is to strengthen our marketing, sales, and provisioning efforts
and continue to achieve significant access line and revenue growth from our full portfolio of
products. With our infrastructure now in place, we expect to migrate substantially more
customers on to our network to improve our operational and financial performance.''
GST's services in Los Angeles and Houston will include Plain Old Telephone Service
(POTS), PowerTrunk, Analog Trunk, long distance, Internet, paging, Centrex, voice mail,
and Custom Local Access Signaling Services (CLASS) such as call forwarding, caller I.D.,
and automatic call back.
GST first established a presence in the Houston market in 1996 though several strategic
acquisitions, such as TotalNet. Initial services offered to customers in Texas include data,
Internet, and long distance. In addition to the voice switch that is now on-line in the
Houston market, GST operates switches on its frame relay fiber backbone in Dallas and
Houston. ''In Texas we are exploring strategic partnerships that will complement our
existing operations,'' commented Warta. ''As we work to link our existing operations
throughout the western United States, we will make acquisitions and expansions that fit our
long term strategy to position the Company as a super-regional Competitive Local
Exchange Carrier (CLEC) in the west.''
GST Telecommunications, Inc., headquartered in Vancouver, Wash., currently operates
CLEC operations and long haul fiber networks throughout the western United States and
Hawaii. Facilities-based GST provides a broad range of integrated telecommunications
products and services including local dial tone, long distance, data, and Internet. GST
continues to focus on its regional western strategy by anchoring its CLEC networks in local
markets and connecting them via long haul fiber networks. Visit GST's web
AND OTHER NEWS:
Company Press Release
SOURCE: GST Telecommunications, Inc.
GST Telecommunications Launches Local Phone
Service in San Francisco and Fresno
VANCOUVER, Wash., March 26 /PRNewswire/ -- GST Telecommunications, Inc.
(Amex: GST - news) announced today the launch of local telephone service in San
Francisco and Fresno, California. With the turn up of local dial tone service in these
markets, GST now offers local telephone service in 12 markets.
Other markets currently served in California include: the San Francisco East Bay area, the
Inland Empire, and the Central Coast region. In addition, the Company offers local dial
tone service in Hawaii; Tucson and Phoenix, Arizona; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Boise,
Idaho; Spokane, Washington; and Portland, Oregon.
''With the introduction of local telephone service in San Francisco and our previously
announced intent to acquire San Francisco-based Whole Earth Networks, we are truly
positioning ourselves for future growth in a key California tier one market,'' said Joseph A.
Basile, Jr., president and chief operating officer of GST. ''Our strategy has been to fortify
our CLEC operations and to link our local networks via long haul fiber routes in tier two
and three markets, however, customer demand for our services has driven us beyond these
regions. Our Nortel voice switches in both San Francisco and Fresno are ready for service
and we are now active in the market as a full- service competitor offering local dial tone,
data and long distance services.''
In both San Francisco and Fresno, the Company deployed Nortel DMS 500 Voice
Switches which enable GST to provide both local and long distance services from the same
switching platform. GST's services in San Francisco and Fresno include Plain Old
Telephone Service (POTS), Analog Trunk, long distance, Internet, paging, Centrex, and
Custom Local Access Signaling Services (CLASS) such as call forwarding, caller ID,
voice mail, and automatic call back.
''Deployment of our switches, increased access line growth, and the strengthening of our
infrastructure has and will continue to be our primary focus. We are on track to complete
our goal of 14 operational and customer- ready voice switches by the end of this month
and we expect to activate switches in Houston and Los Angeles by the end of the first
quarter,'' added Basile.
''From an operational standpoint, we are committed to building a strong network of
services for our customers,'' said John Warta, chairman and chief executive officer of GST.
''This latest expansion marks the eleventh and twelfth switches that we committed to
bringing in to service before the end of this quarter. All of our voice switches will be
operational by March 31. Our sales team has been pre-selling local service in our remaining
markets, and we will begin moving live switched traffic immediately,'' added Warta.
The launch of local service in San Francisco and Fresno is GST's latest accomplishment in
its aggressive expansion in California. Construction is currently under way to link GST's
California operations via a 500-mile long haul fiber network which spans from San
Francisco to Los Angeles, increasing GST's statewide presence. In line with its strategy to
link its local networks via long haul fiber routes, late last year GST turned up its 150-mile
northern California East Bay network. In January, GST announced a major agreement that
established a long-haul fiber connection linking GST's Arizona and Los Angeles operations.
GST Telecommunications, Inc., headquartered in Vancouver, Wash., currently operates
Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) operations and long haul fiber networks
throughout the western United States and Hawaii. Facilities- based GST provides a broad
range of integrated telecommunications products and services including local dial tone, long
distance, data, and Internet. GST continues to focus on its regional western strategy by
anchoring its CLEC networks in local markets and connecting them via long haul fiber
networks. Visit GST's web site at www.gstcorp.com.
SOURCE: GST Telecommunicatio |
