OTCBB FTEL
For Immediate Release
December 27, 1996
EXCLUSIVE DEAL FOR FLAT RATE 800 SERVICE
Westlake Village, CA.> Franklin Telecom announced today that FNet, its Internet
Division, has signed an exclusive agreement with Connect America to provide Flat Rate
800 Number Internet access anywhere in the United States!
According to Franklin President and CEO Frank Peters, "To the best of our knowledge,
we are the only company in America offering this service. Even the "Mega Players" like
America On-Line and Prodigy have holes in their coverage; until today there were still
isolated pockets which they simply could not reach and service. If you total these areas,
that's actually a tremendous untouched market - and it's ours to tap! The
"geographically impaired" can now avail themselves of the same fast, reliable access to
the Internet as the most sophisticated high-tech Fortune 500 executive in Manhattan."
Thanks to the recent installation by GTE of state-of-the-art optical fiber (which includes
an OC-3, the equivalent of three T-3's) into Franklin's headquarters, the company is
primed to gear up at optimal speed for the enormous demand which has already begun.
Four additional T-1 lines, each capable of handling 250 customers, are being fired up
next week. Franklin is utilizing an AT&T SLC 2000 Fiber System capable of handling 84
T-1 spans to ensure speed and quality.
Peters explains, "Doing this right is a tremendous challenge. Much of the necessary
equipment is being purchased by FNet from Franklin Telecom; at the moment, because
of previous commitments, FNet is having to queue up behind other Franklin Telecom
customers and wait its turn for delivery on additional channel banks. Aside from making
sure that our technical infrastructure is in place in a timely manner, we are also moving
to expand our sales and technical support force with knowledgeable, well-trained
personnel. An additional advantage will be realized if Feb. when the Franklin Cyclone
product comes on line. We could be our own largest user. If the order rate continues we
will need about 8,000 modem/channel bank ports ASAP. The tremendous cash and
hard work invested during the last 14 months is now beginning to pay off."
Pricing for the 800 service will be $30.00 per month, starting January 1st. Neil Wyenn,
National Marketing Manager is offering a $25.00 special with three months pre-paid
service. Wyenn states, "Customers will be able to sign up for the 800 service directly
from our Web Page: ftel.com. Of special interest to our business customers,
we have specially designated ISDN 800 lines available in addition to regular Dial-Up
accounts."
Connect America, based in Riverside, California, has been in business since 1994.
Connect America is a wholesale Internet Provider with over 700 ISP resellers throughout
the country. The deal between Franklin and Connect America was accomplished
utilizing mutual equity participation. Greg Evans, president of Connect America says,
"This deal between Franklin Telecom and Connect America will turn out to be a bigger
deal than the recent arrangement between World Comm and UU Net. You can quote me
on that!"
More information can be obtained by contacting Helen West, Shareholder Relations, at 805-373-8688.
Franklin Telecom, founded in 1981, designs and manufactures communications devices and software.
Franklin has an installed base of over 100,000 nodes. Franklin is traded on the Over The Counter Market
as "FTEL". |
