FTEL NEWS
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delayed 20 mins - disclaimerTuesday November 24, 3:03 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
Franklin's FNet Teams with GTE to Offer ADSL Service
FNet FastLink A Bargain for Business at 25 Times 56K Modem Speed
WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 24, 1998--FNet Corp., an IP Telephony and Internet subsidiary of Franklin Telecom Tuesday announced that in cooperation with GTE it has begun installation to provide ADSL service in Southern California.
As a participating ISP with GTE, www.gte.com/dsl/partisp.html, FNet's initial area of service will be LATA 5 (Local Access Transport Area), which includes most of Southern California south of Santa Barbara, including the L.A. metropolitan area.
Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) is an established modem-based technology that is now being used to enable a dedicated connection to the Internet that is up to 25 times faster than conventional 56K modems. This technology facilitates simultaneous transmission of voice and data on an existing phone line. ADSL features what is known as ''always on technology'' which means it provides instant access to the Net with no dialing, no waiting, no busy signals, and no need for a separate data line.
At present this service is available to customers within approximately a three mile radius of their central office. According to telephone company estimates, nationwide, approximately 40% of households and businesses meet this criteria with a higher percentage in metropolitan areas. At present, only about 2.5% (representing 20 million subscribers) of telco central offices are conditioned for DSL but because of demand, increasing this percentage is a high priority.
According to Frank Peters, Chairman & CEO of Franklin, ''FNet FastLink goes a long way toward putting small businesses on a more equal footing with their larger competitors by providing them service which was, up until now, only affordable by much larger companies. Since the outset, FNet has focused on corporate and professional Internet usage, so getting in on the very ground floor of a service with this potential is extremely satisfying. FNet FastLink will bring our customers the fastest available download speeds and position them to take advantage of the many rapidly emerging Internet features such as e-commerce, streaming content and full-motion video.''
Peters went on to explain, ''One key point is that unlike ISDN, which, by the way is much slower than ADSL, FastLink is not usage sensitive. The service does not charge by the minute. Acceptable usage policy will apply.''
Peters added, ''This move is facilitated by the OC24 optical fiber which was installed by GTE in our Westlake Village headquarters. This assures us of full capability to handle the widespread anticipated demand for this service.''
During the current FastLink pilot program, customers may visit www.franklin.net to prequalify their location for service. FNet will begin taking orders Dec. 7 for FastLink service throughout Southern California. Pricing and levels of available service will be announced December 1 on our web site. The range of pricing will start at $70 for 256K ADSL including Internet Access. Average installation time is four weeks.
The primary business of Franklin Telecom, founded in 1981, is the design and manufacturing of communications devices, high speed LAN, WAN, Telco and Satellite Systems and software. Franklin customers have installed over 100,000 nodes worldwide. Franklin's Internet subsidiary FNet provides Voice over Internet Protocol global Telco services.
Certain statements in this press release constitute ''forward-looking statements'' within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of the company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements, expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
For additional information about this announcement, visit the Officer's Message page at Franklin's Web Site: www.ftel.com; www.franklin.net - for Internet Services and Access; www.fnet.net - for Internet Telephony & Franklin's Next Generation Telephone Company.
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Contact:
Franklin Telecom, Westlake Village |
