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By nearly every measure – customer satisfaction, profitability, innovation, network reliability, revenue, cash flow generation and customer growth – Verizon Wireless is the nation’s leading wireless provider. We continue to outperform the rest of the industry, and last year we were recognized as having the best wireless network by a major research organization and several national publications.
That record of superior service and network quality gives Verizon Wireless the most loyal customer relationships in the industry and continues to fuel our growth. In the fourth quarter of 2003, as new local number portability rules allowed wireless customers to switch carriers without changing phone numbers, Verizon Wireless’s “churn” rate of customer turnover reached record lows. We added a net of 5 million customers in 2003 – increasing our customer base by 15.5 percent, to more than 37.5 million, in a highly competitive market.
Verizon Wireless also extended its lead by rolling out several popular new services, including picture messaging; Push To Talk walkie-talkie service; and a host of downloadable games, ring tones and applications like SuperPages.com On The Go. We completed deployment of our high-speed wireless data technology nationwide, which enables applications popular with large business customers. And this year, we will use innovation to differentiate us even further as we begin expanding our BroadbandAccess service in additional markets across the country. BroadbandAccess from Verizon Wireless will be the fastest wireless wide-area data connection available.
We saw a dramatic rise in data revenue and usage in 2003, and we expect this momentum to continue. To help our customers take full advantage of our data capabilities, we will continue to roll out an array of applications and advanced mobile devices customized to present visual content that will further increase usage of data and messaging services for home and business customers.
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Fast Wireless Data Gets Even Faster
In 2003, Verizon Wireless not only completed our nationwide deployment of a high-speed wireless data network and service, we also launched an ultra-high-speed wide-area broadband network and service in San Diego and Washington, D.C., that gives customers wireless access to the Internet, intranets, e-mail and other applications at broadband speeds. This new service, BroadbandAccess, delivers average speeds of 300-500 kilobits per second, making it the fastest commercial wide-area wireless data technology available today. With BroadbandAccess, Verizon Wireless users can get a super-fast connection on the road, at the job site, in a taxi, on the train or anywhere within the coverage area.
In 2004, our commitment is to continue expanding this innovative technology in major markets across the country. This will enable a host of applications especially valuable to small and large business customers, and it will transform the wireless experience for more customers through broadband applications such as video messaging, multiplayer-gaming, video and music content, at speeds previously unavailable over wireless networks.
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