Media Contact Info

Jim Gerace
James.Gerace@VerizonWireless.com
908-559-7508

04/04/2008

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Verizon Wireless said today that the spectrum it gained in the FCC’s recent 700 MHz auction is a critical piece of its overall broadband strategy to take advantage of the enormous opportunity for growth in data services in the future. The spectrum will allow the company to capture the full potential of its announced plan to deploy a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network and Open Development Initiative and the resulting next wave of wireless innovation. The company’s comments were made in a conference call with the investment community this morning.

Verizon Wireless was the winning bidder for a nationwide spectrum footprint (excluding Alaska) in the FCC-termed C-Block group of licenses, plus 102 licenses for individual markets around the country.

In all, the company will pay $9.36 billion for these licenses, which equates to $1.03 per MHz Pop, compared with the auction average of $1.20.

The FCC announced the end of the auction on March 20, but the company was limited in commenting until the Commission’s anti-collusion quiet period rules ended late in the day on April 3.

The new spectrum, which will not be completely cleared for use until mid-February 2009, will increase the company’s average spectrum depth per market to 82 MHz, from 52 MHz today.

Verizon Wireless plans to launch its LTE network in the 700 MHz spectrum in the 2010 timeframe. The company said the breadth of the national C-block spectrum footprint, all in a single band and with a depth of 22 MHz, provides a speed and performance advantage that will be ideal for connecting a variety of consumer electronics, from wireless phones to medical devices to gaming consoles. In addition, the 102 individual licenses in the A and B-blocks provide additional growth capacity in key markets.

“The spectrum we purchased in this auction, combined with our existing portfolio, provides new flexibility as we execute our high-growth business model,” said Lowell McAdam, the company’s president and CEO.

“We now have sufficient spectrum to continue growing our business and data revenues well into – and possibly through – the next decade, and this is the very best spectrum with excellent propagation and in-building characteristics. We also believe that the combination of the national, contiguous, same-frequency C-block footprint and our transition to LTE will make Verizon the preferred partner for developers of a new wave of consumer electronics and applications using this next generation technology.

“In all, this spectrum positions us well to preserve our current advantage and reputation as the nation’s most reliable wireless network and the leader in data services. This is a wise investment in future data growth opportunities,” he said.

Note:
A replay of the presentation webcast can be accessed on Verizon's Investor Relations Web site, www.verizon.com/investor.

About Verizon Wireless
Verizon Wireless operates the nation’s most reliable wireless voice and data network, serving 65.7 million customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 69,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) and Vodafone (NYSE and LSE: VOD). For more information, go to: www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.

Following are the licenses for which Verizon Wireless was the winning bidder:

22 MHz C Block Markets
Northeast
Southeast
Great Lakes
Mississippi Valley
Central
West
Hawaii

12 MHz A Block Markets
NYC-Long Is. NY-NJ-CT-PA-MA-VT
Phil.-Atl. City PA-NJ-DE-MD
Wash.-Balt. DC-MD-VA-WV-PA
Orlando FL
Miami-Fort Lauderdale FL
Tampa-St. Petersburg FL
Atlanta GA-AL-NC
Cincinnati-Hamilton OH-KY-IN
Cleveland-Akron OH-PA
Detroit-Ann Arbor-Flint MI
Grand Rapids-Muskegon MI
Chicago-Gary-Kenosha IL-IN-WI
Indianapolis IN-IL
Kansas City MO-KS
Minneapolis-St. Paul MN-WI-IA
Oklahoma City OK
Dallas-Fort Worth TX-AR-OK
Austin-San Marcos TX
Houston-Galveston-Brazoria TX
San Antonio TX
Denver-Boulder CO-KS-NE
LA-Riverside-Orange Cnty CA-AZ
Fresno CA
San Fran.-Oakland-San Jose CA
Sacramento-Yolo CA

12 MHz B Block Markets
Los Angeles-Anaheim, CA *
Chicago, IL *
Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL *
Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN *
Rochester, NY
Memphis, TN-AR-MS
Oklahoma City, OK *
Greensboro-Winston-Salem, NC
Charlotte-Gastonia, NC
Youngstown-Warren, OH *
Raleigh-Durham, NC
West Palm Beach-Boca Raton, FL *
Columbus, GA-AL
Lubbock, TX
Amarillo, TX
Yakima, WA
Waco, TX *
Lake Charles, LA
Alexandria, LA
Longview-Marshall, TX
Fort Collins-Loveland, CO *
Bradenton, FL
Anderson, IN *
Athens, GA *
Tyler, TX *
Texarkana, AR-TX *
Pueblo, CO
Odessa, TX
Billings, MT
Laredo, TX *
Rapid City, SD
Midland, TX
Great Falls, MT
Casper, WY
Colorado 2 – Logan *
Colorado 4 – Park *
Colorado 5 – Elbert *
Florida 3 – Hardee
Idaho 1 – Boundary
Idaho 5 – Butte
Indiana 4 – Miami *
Kansas 7 – Trego
Kansas 8 – Ellsworth
Kansas 11 – Hamilton
Kansas 12 – Hodgeman
Kansas 13 – Edwards
Louisiana 1 – Claiborne
Louisiana 2 – Morehouse
Louisiana 3 - De Soto
Maryland 3 – Frederick *
Montana 7 – Fergus
Montana 8 – Beaverhead
Montana 9 – Carbon
Nebraska 1 – Sioux
Nebraska 2 - Cherry
Nebraska 7 - Hall
Nebraska 9 - Adams
Nevada 3 - Storey
New Jersey 2 – Ocean *
New Mexico 5 - Grant
New Mexico 6 - Lincoln
Oklahoma 4 - Nowata
Oregon 3 - Umatilla
South Dakota 1 - Harding
Texas 2 - Hansford
Texas 6 – Jack *
Texas 18 – Edwards *
Texas 19 - Atascosa
Utah 1 - Box Elder
Utah 4 - Beaver
Utah 5 - Daggett
Utah 6 - Piute
Virginia 10 – Frederick *
Washington 2 - Okanogan
Washington 5 - Kittitas
Washington 8 - Whitman
Wyoming 2 - Sheridan

* indicates majority of Pops overlap with an A license