this is from last week: Wednesday September 29, 1:12 pm Eastern Time
Company Press Release
e.spire Turns Up Voice Switches in New York City, Philadelphia and Las
Vegas
Completes Washington, D.C./ Northern Virginia Fiber-optic Network
New Markets Nearly Double Potential Customer Base for Industry-Leading Suite of Integrated Data, Internet and Voice
Services
ANNAPOLIS JUNCTION, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 29, 1999-- e.spire Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: ESPI - news), the communications company
for the networked economy, announced today that it has achieved a major milestone in its long-term business strategy with the turn up of three new voice switches in
New York City, Philadelphia and Las Vegas, the completion of its Washington, DC/Northern Virginia fiber-optic network, and the introduction of its comprehensive
suite of fully integrated data, Internet and voice services for businesses in all four markets.
''With these assets in place, e.spire is uniquely positioned as a single-source provider for all of the communications needs of businesses in four of the largest and
fastest-growing markets in the country,'' said e.spire Chairman and CEO Anthony J. Pompliano. ''The opening of these networks and the fact that we are coming to
market with our full line of products and services is a testament to e.spire's commitment to aggressively meeting our business objectives, and our laser-like focus on
execution and follow through.''
e.spire's metro-area networks feature self-healing SONET technology, Lucent 5ESS-2000 digital voice switches, Newbridge MainStreetXpress 36170 ATM
switches and carrier-grade Cisco routers. This advanced technology allows e.spire to offer a comprehensive portfolio of competitively priced, integrated products
and services on a single network, with one point-of-contact and one invoice.
e.spire's integrated product solutions allow customers to bundle local and long distance voice services, Internet service, Web hosting and frame relay, over a
common physical access platform, in the combination that meets their needs today and is capable of growing with their expanding needs in the future.
''In contrast to the telecom giants, we are focused on providing integrated communications solutions that will help our small- to medium-sized business customers
thrive in today's networked economy,'' said Pompliano. ''And, unlike some of our competitors, e.spire's assets are already in the ground, carrying traffic and
providing services today.''
In addition to the four Tier-1 cities announced today, e.spire operates local fiber-optic networks in 34 other metropolitan markets, including: Albuquerque, NM;
Amarillo, TX; Atlanta, GA; Austin, TX; Baltimore, MD; Baton Rouge, LA; Birmingham, AL; Charleston, SC; Chattanooga, TN; Colorado Springs, CO; Columbia,
SC; Columbus, GA; Corpus Christi, TX; Dallas, TX; El Paso, TX; Fort Worth, TX; Greenville, SC; Irving, TX; Jackson, MS; Jacksonville, FL; Kansas City, MO;
Lexington, KY; Little Rock, AR; Louisville, KY; Miami/Fort Lauderdale, FL; Mobile, AL; Montgomery, AL; New Orleans, LA; San Antonio, TX; Shreveport,
LA; Spartanburg, SC; Tampa, FL; Tucson, AZ; and Tulsa, OK.
e.spire Communications, Inc. is a leading integrated communications provider, offering traditional local and long distance, Internet access and Web-hosting services,
and advanced data solutions, such as native ATM and frame relay.
In addition, e.spire's subsidiary, ACSI NT, provides third parties, including other communications concerns, municipalities and corporations, with turnkey fiber-optic
design, construction and project management expertise. For more information on e.spire, contact espire.net.
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