AirTouch Cellular Launches Digital Service In Omaha,
First Digital Wireless Company to Offer E-Mail and
Internet Messaging Donates 11 Digital Phones to Jimmy
Wilson Jr. Foundation
Business Wire - June 24, 1998 11:33
%AIRTOUCH-CELLULAR %NEBRASKA %COMED %COMPUTERS %ELECTRONICS
%TELECOMMUNICATIONS V%BW P%BW
OMAHA, Neb.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 24, 1998--AirTouch Cellular announced today that
cellular customers throughout Omaha now have access to time-saving digital services made possible
by Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) technology.
Marketed under the brand name AirTouch Powerband Digital, AirTouch's fully-digital 13 kilobit
CDMA cellular service is available from Washington County to Bellevue (including Offutt Air Force
Base) and from Underwood, Iowa to the Platte River.
"CDMA is widely recognized as the ultimate digital technology for cellular customers," said LeAnn
Talbot, vice president and general manager for AirTouch Cellular in the Midwest. "With the
AirTouch Powerband Digital network at their fingertips, AirTouch customers will enjoy
extraordinary digital call quality, reliable connections, unsurpassed security and up to four and a half
hours of talk time on a single battery."
"We also have put the technology to work for customers in the form of time-saving features that give
users the power of a pager, answering machine, Caller ID box and cellular phone in one 7.2 ounce
package," Talbot said.
The new Powerband Digital services -- available only to AirTouch Cellular subscribers in Omaha --
include text messaging, voice mail with notification, paging and Caller ID.
"The service that's brought the most excitement in markets where AirTouch Powerband Digital
currently is available is e-mail and Internet messaging," said Talbot. "AirTouch is the first wireless
company in Omaha to offer features that allow callers to send customer messages up to 50
characters in length to a AirTouch Digital user via e-mail and the World Wide Web."
AirTouch Powerband Digital phones operate in both the digital and analog mode, giving customers
the ability to use their digital cellular phones throughout most of the country. "With millions of
customers on the existing cellular network, high-quality analog service will continue to be the
backbone of the wireless industry," Talbot said. "With AirTouch Powerband Digital, customers can
enjoy the best of both worlds: The most advanced digital service available with high-quality analog
included so they can use their AirTouch digital phones in more than 5,500 cities nationwide."
In order to enjoy the benefits of CDMA and AirTouch Powerband Digital features, customers will
need to use dual-mode CDMA/analog phones available to AirTouch Cellular customers from
Qualcomm.
"AirTouch is the largest wireless carrier in the world," Talbot said. "With that kind of experience and
expertise backing AirTouch Powerband Digital, it promises to deliver unmatched quality and value
to customers."
At a press conference held this morning at the Omaha Police Station, Talbot presented the Jimmy
Wilson Jr. Foundation with 11 AirTouch Powerband Digital phones. "Like our customers, AirTouch
is making safety concerns a top priority in Omaha and throughout the country," said Talbot. "We're
pleased to demonstrate our convictions by supporting the Jimmy Wilson Junior Foundation with
phones and Powerband Digital Service."
AirTouch Powerband Digital service is available in: Atlanta, Detroit, Salt Lake City, Portland,
Denver, Seattle, Minneapolis, San Diego, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Albuquerque, New Mexico.
AirTouch Communications, based in San Francisco, is the largest wireless company in the world
with 29 million total global customers. AirTouch has U.S. cellular operations in 19 states including
15 of the top 30 U.S. markets: Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Atlanta, Detroit,
Cleveland, San Jose, Sacramento, Cincinnati, Kansas City, Seattle, Portland, Denver, Phoenix and
Minneapolis.
AIRTOUCH POWERBAND DIGITAL FEATURES
-- Text Messaging: This service allows customers to receive written messages on the display screen
of their cellular phones. Messages can be up to 50 characters in length, and for the first time in
Omaha callers can send custom messages to a AirTouch Digital user via E-Mail and the World
Wide Web on the Internet. In addition callers can use a dial-up connection with a PC and modem
or an AirTouch cellular operator who will take a verbal message and relay it as a text message to
the cellular phone. If a phone number is included in the text message, the customer can simply push
the SEND button to be immediately connected.
-- Voice Mail with Notification: This fully-featured voice mail system alerts a customer -- with a
flashing icon on the screen of the phone and five short beeps -- that a voice mail message has been
received. With a push of a button, the user is automatically connected to voice mail and can retrieve
the message. The screen of the phone constantly updates customers on the number of messages
received, the date and time received, and whether they have been marked urgent.
-- Call-Back Number: When a cellular customer's phone is busy, turned off or out of the service
area, callers can use this feature to send a page and call-back number. Just like a pager, the phone
stores the caller's number, allowing the cellular customer to return the call by simply pressing the
SEND key.
-- Caller ID: The number of the calling party will be displayed on the screen of the AirTouch Digital
phone. If the number is stored in the phone's memory, the name of the individual also will be
displayed. |
