MONROE, La., Aug. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Residents, businesses and
visitors in Vail will soon have access to broadband wireless Internet service
provided by CenturyTel and the Town of Vail. CenturyTel today announced that
the Vail Town Council awarded the communications company a contract to build
and operate a wireless broadband network for the Colorado ski resort
destination.
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Vail is the first Colorado city to move ahead with this type of
partnership to build a municipal Wi-Fi network. The town selected CenturyTel
to build its system following a competitive bid process that included
proposals from six other companies. The agreement was unanimously approved by
the Vail Town Council at its July 18 evening meeting.
CenturyTel will build a Wi-Fi mesh network in Vail and launch service by
the end of 2006. Residents, businesses and visitors will be able to get free
Internet access up to 300Kbps (kilobits per second) anywhere in town in one
hour increments. Faster Internet service with speeds up to 3Mbps (megabits
per second) will be available with pay plans for monthly, weekly or daily
access.
"We applaud the Town of Vail for their forward thinking and initiative,"
Karen Puckett, CenturyTel president and chief operating officer, said. "This
is a strategic step for CenturyTel to expand our technologically advanced
business outside of our traditional local telephone markets."
CenturyTel and the Town of Vail worked together to develop additional
services such as a Public Safety network and a private network for city
workers. With these elements, the Town's first responders and other public
safety officials, as well as town employees will be able to securely connect
to their intranet network and the Internet.
"We will have a state-of-the-art system that benefits everyone --
residents, businesses, guests and our public safety personnel," said Vail
Mayor Rod Slifer. "This is the kind of innovation that continues to
differentiate Vail from other ski resort destinations."
The Wi-Fi network coverage will include the town limits/boundary of the
Town of Vail. The network will deliver an affordable world-class Internet
service to Vail residents, businesses and visitors. The citywide wireless
system will use the latest in advanced carrier-grade mesh and wireless
communications equipment to deliver high-speed wireless Internet access. Once
the system is fully functional, it will be tested and fine-tuned to maximize
the coverage area.
CenturyTel brings expert design and maintenance experience in building and
operating communications networks. No capital will be required from the Town
of Vail in the deployment or operation of the network. The company is
committed to making the investment in capital and human resources to make the
project a success. CenturyTel will bring advanced communications with a
personal touch to the residents, businesses and visitors of Vail.
About CenturyTel
CenturyTel (NYSE: CTL) is a leading provider of communications, high-speed
Internet and entertainment services in small-to-mid-size cities through our
broadband and fiber transport networks. Included in the S&P 500 Index,
CenturyTel delivers advanced communications with a personal touch to customers
in 25 states. Visit CenturyTel at www.centurytel.com.
SOURCE CenturyTel
Contact: Media: Jeff Nevins, +1-318-330-6704, or jeff.nevins@centurytel.com; Investors: Tony Davis, +1-318-388-9525, or tony.davis@centurytel.com, both of CenturyTel