NYNEX Mobile selects AT&T equipment for 400 cell sites

ORANGEBURG, N.Y. -- July 21, 1992 -- NYNEX Mobile Communications Company today announced that it has selected AT&T Network Systems to provide the technology that will move cellular communications into the digital age.

The multi year contract, worth several hundred million dollars, will grow NYNEX Mobile's system from its current 340 cell sites in the New York metropolitan area, upstate New York and New England to more than 700 sites by 1994. Cell sites are the antenna and radio equipment needed to set up and complete calls on cellular phones.

NYNEX Mobile will incorporate into its present cellular network AT&T's AUTOPLEX(R) System 1000 Series II cell sites which are designed to accommodate the next generation of wireless technology. The new Series II platform is able to handle such disparate and evolving digital standards as Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) and Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA).

"This purchase underscores our long-standing commitment to providing customers with the best possible service," said A. F. Boschulte, president, NYNEX Mobile. "And the equipment offers us maximum flexibility to reconfigure and upgrade our system as new enhancements become available. That means we will be able to deliver the advantages of digital communications to our customers very quickly and efficiently."

"There is no question that digital cellular service is just over the horizon. There is a question, however, of exactly what form it will take," said Jim Brewington, president, AT&T Network Wireless Systems. "One of the major advantages of the AUTOPLEX system is its flexibility to meet whichever digital standard is required."

To allow customers to use their portable phones anytime and anywhere, NYNEX Mobile is also employing AT&T's microcellular technology. Microcell technology brings wireless coverage inside buildings and to other hard-to-reach areas.

AT&T's AUTOPLEX Systems are manufactured at the company's Columbus, Ohio, plant.

NYNEX Mobile Communications Company, a member of the NYNEX family of companies, is a leading provider of wirefree telecommunications services. The 1,200-employee company serves more than 340,000 customers throughout New England, New York and New Jersey.