OTCBB FTEL
For Immediate Release
December 3, 1996
FNET OFFERS 800 NUMBER FOR THE INTERNET.
Westlake Village, CA.> Franklin Telecom announced today that FNet, its Internet
subsidiary, is now offering an 800 number to make FNet's service truly national! FNet is
offering Unlimited Internet Access through this 800 number for a flat rate fee of $18.88
per month.
In October, FNet announced the availability of national internet service via its connection
to World Com's GridNet. According to National Accounts Manager Neil Wyenn, "The
response to our announcement has been good; within three weeks of running our first
ad, we have had customers call to sign up from almost half our states! While Grid Net is
expanding rapidly, there are still a number of pockets, particularly in areas away from
major cities, where service is not yet available. The addition of this 800 number means
that we can service even the most remote areas immediately."
Wyenn goes to say, "This will be a tremendous help for executives who travel with their
laptops. Wherever they find themselves, they will use the same dial-up number
programmed into Windows 95 setup or other operating system to ease the traveling
executive from the reprogramming various phone numbers depending on where they
are in the U.S. Current customers who wish to change to FNet's 800 service can do so
with a small one-time service fee."
Frank Peters, FNet's president confirms, "At the beginning of 1996, FNet was still in the
planning stages. We announced its formation in January and introduced local service in
February. During the spring and summer we expanded dramatically throughout the
southern California area and now, as we head into the holiday season FNet is fully
functioning as a national Internet Service Provider. GTE has our OC3 Fiber Optic Link
up and operating so we can add new applications, acquire new companies and
customers quickly. The reality has steadily outpaced our expectations. In the harsh light
of operations it is still difficult for small ISP's to make a profit. Accordingly we have
expanded our focus on business and broad band services using products which
Franklin makes."
Peters continued, "As we move toward a new year, FNet is positioned and ready for the
next phase of our plan, which is to provide a broad array of added value services,
including Voice Mail, Fax Mail, Fax Broadcasting and Information Services"
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". |
