Blue Earth Valley Communications Purchases SuperLine Access System To Provide Bundled Voice and Data Services

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Blue Earth Valley Communications Purchases SuperLine Access System To Provide Bundled Voice and Data Services
    PHOENIX, Nov. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- AG Communication Systems, a subsidiary of
Lucent Technologies, announced today that Eckles Telephone Company, Inc., of
New Prague, Minn., a subsidiary of Blue Earth Valley Communications, has
purchased the SuperLine(TM) Access System to provide bundled voice and data
services for its residential and small-office/home-office (SOHO) customers.
Eckles will use SuperLine to offer its customers plain old telephone service
(POTS) plus up to two additional voice lines and Ethernet data over existing
copper phone lines.
    "Our customers are demanding additional phone lines and high-speed data
access," said Mike Springer, operations manager for Blue Earth Valley
Communications.  "SuperLine is really performing in satisfying that demand.
It allows us to serve our customers immediately, without the expense of
outside plant construction."
    "SuperLine gives service providers great economic value by reducing costs
while increasing revenues," said Ken Arndt, vice president of marketing and
sales support for AG Communication Systems.  "SuperLine will allow Blue Earth
to expand its core telephony business and add new data revenues by providing
three fully featured phone lines and Ethernet data over a single copper pair."
    The SuperLine solution consists of two major elements: the SuperLine
Access Shelf manufactured by AG Communication Systems and the SuperLine
Integrated Access Device (IAD) manufactured by Paradyne Networks, Inc.
(Nasdaq: PDYN).
    The SuperLine Access Shelf resides in a service provider's central office
or beside a remote digital loop carrier (DLC).  The SuperLine IAD - a piece of
equipment similar in size to a modem - is located in a customer's home or
office.
    SuperLine both merges and enhances features available from DLC and
digitally added main line (DAML) products with competitive pricing,
performance and function.  SuperLine utilizes digital links to deliver the
additional phone lines from a central office switch via standards-based
digital switch interfaces.  SuperLine uses Tripleplay(TM) technology from
Paradyne and is compatible with existing network services, including POTS,
ISDN, ADSL, T1 and legacy data circuits.
    SuperLine can reduce service providers' annual construction costs by more
than 25 percent.  Unlike existing solutions for digitally adding lines to an
existing copper wire, SuperLine is customer-installable, so service providers
do not need to send technicians to each home or office to install the
SuperLine IAD.  This significantly reduces costs and allows service providers
to quickly get the new phone lines into service for increased customer
satisfaction.
    At the home or small office, the consumer simply plugs the SuperLine IAD
into a conventional power outlet and any existing phone jack.  The additional
phone lines are accessed through standard modular jacks on the SuperLine IAD
and support enhanced voice services such as call forwarding, caller ID, call
waiting and distinctive ringing.
    On the derived lines, SuperLine supports the maximum-allowable speeds on
V.90 56 Kbps analog modems with AG Communication Systems' SuperSpeed(TM)
technology.  A higher-speed Ethernet data option allows service providers to
stimulate even higher revenues by offering data rates of up to half a megabit
on normal loops.

    About Blue Earth Valley Communications, Inc.
    Blue Earth Valley Communications (http://www.bevcomm.net) is one of the largest
locally-owned independent telephone companies in the state of Minnesota.  Blue
Earth Valley Communications has been providing service for the Blue Earth
Valley Telephone Company since 1895 and for Eckles Telephone Company and
Easton Telephone Company since 1939, as well as providing service to Minnesota
Lake Telephone Company and Shell Rock Telephone Company.  Together, they serve
approximately 14,100 telephone customers in Minnesota and Iowa.
    In addition to providing local phone service, its affiliated companies
provide business telephone systems, video-conferencing facilities and service,
local Internet access, and other telecommunications-related products and
services to business and residential customers in Southern Minnesota and North
Central Iowa.

    About AG Communication Systems
    AG Communication Systems (http://www.agcs.com), a subsidiary of Lucent
Technologies, is a leading developer and manufacturer of advanced
communication products and services, including switching, access and wireless
products.  AG Communication Systems' GTD-5(R) digital switching systems serve
more than 17 million business, government and residential subscribers.

    All products and brand names are trademarks or registered trademarks of
their respective owners.  SuperLine and SuperSpeed are trademarks of AG
Communication Systems.  Tripleplay is a trademark of Paradyne Corporation.
GTD-5 is a registered trademark used under license from GTE Corporation.
SOURCE AG Communication Systems
http://www.agcs.com
CONTACT:
Hiro Notaney of AG Communication Systems,
623-581-4639 (work), 602-228-1989 (mobile), notaneyh@agcs.com
NOTE TO EDITORS: Visit AG Communication Systems' virtual press
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