Building on over a decade of experience managing and delivering packet data services, Cingular Wireless today announced the rollout of their GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) solution in a number of markets in the Southeast and Las Vegas. The fast, always-on service is already available in the state of Washington.

The introduction of 'Cingular Wireless Internet Express' provides consumers, as well as business users, with an improved wireless Internet experience with "always on" access to information and speeds up to 10 times faster than current technologies on other domestic wireless networks. The new GPRS service, which introduces packet data transmission technology into its existing GSM network, is an extension of Cingular's expertise leveraging its extensive and seamless nationwide Mobitex network.

Cingular's Wireless Internet Express gives consumers in Las Vegas, the Carolinas, eastern Tennessee, and coastal Georgia (including Savannah, Augusta, Brunswick) the flexibility to toggle between an Internet session and a phone call or text message without having to abandon their Internet connection. This means that Cingular mobile phone users can have convenient access to e-mail, wireless Internet, messaging, games and other services. Additionally, with the Motorola Timeport 7389i tri-band phone, consumers can roam anywhere on GSM across the U.S. and Canada and with Cingular's GSM partners overseas.

The introduction of this new technology to consumers in the Southeast lays the foundation for Cingular's roll-out of "2.5G" technology nationwide and its gradual evolution to "3G" or third generation wireless technology. Cingular Wireless Internet Express is expected to be available in all of Cingular's GSM markets by early 2002.

"Cingular Wireless is proud to be to deliver the next generation of wireless communications to consumers," said Stephen Krom, Cingular vice president of marketing for Internet and data. "In the coming months, Cingular will leverage its depth of experience with business applications, delivering many of the same services currently offered via Cingular's Mobitex-based packet data network, such as wireless access to corporate e-mail through Cingular Xpress Mail, a feature no other wireless provider offers over GPRS."

Cingular's Wireless Internet Express service in the Southeast is running over network infrastructure supplied by Nortel Networks. Ericsson Inc. supplies the GPRS network infrastructure in Las Vegas.

Business users have long enjoyed Cingular's many industry-leading services. Cingular's Corporate E-mail PLUS takes popular wireless e-mail services like BlackBerry™ to the next level by allowing users to receive, respond to and forward e-mails as if they were in the office. Corporate E-mail PLUS is the only service that gives enterprise employees wireless access to their corporate e-mail via the Blackberry wireless e-mail solution, along with interactive messaging capabilities from both the RIM 950 or RIM 957 Wireless Handhelds™. Users can also combine Corporate E-mail PLUS with other services, such as line of business applications and business news and lifestyle content, on the same handheld.

Consumers with Cingular's new GPRS service can use Cingular's My Wireless Window Internet portal (www.mywirelesswindow.com) and enjoy improved access to the mobile Internet for smarter, faster and more affordable information.
The wireless portal, accessible from a mobile phone or personal computer, includes calendar, shopping, e-mail, address book and instant messaging. The My Wireless Window portal also provides access to the latest information on stocks, sports, games, weather, news, movies, lottery, horoscopes as well as driving directions and Yellow Pages information for mobile phone users.

With Cingular's new Wireless Internet Express, air time will not count against wireless rate plan minutes, so customers are able to spend as much time on the Internet as needed, paying for their data volume usage (per kilobyte sent and received). Wireless Internet Express will be offered as a feature add-on to any rate plan, giving consumers added flexibility to meet their specific needs. Packages are available starting at $14.99 and including 100 interactive messages.