Sprint Announces Reductions in FTS2000/Bridge Contract Rates - government contracts - Company Business and Marketing

Cambridge Telcom Report, Nov 22, 1999

Sprint announced Monday that it has reduced its pricing on the federal government's FTS2000/Bridge contract to rates equivalent to those on the company's next-generation FTS2001 network. The reduction will allow Sprint's FTS2000 customers to take advantage of the new contract's lower prices while they transition to the FTS2001 network.

Tony D'Agata, vice president and general manager of Sprint Government Systems Division, said he hopes the lower rates will hasten the transition to the FTS2001 contract by offering federal agencies a glimpse of the savings the new contract will provide. "We want to offer our customers the excellent service they have come to expect from Sprint at substantially lower prices," D'Agata said. "In this era of tight budgets, we are sure agencies will welcome the opportunity to apply these savings to their most pressing telecommunications needs."

The new rates will cover the full range of services offered by Sprint on the FTS2000 contract and will allow customers to save approximately 32% on switched voice service and 56% on frame relay service. The pricing, equivalent to rates proposed for the first and second years of the FTS2001 contract, are effective as of Sept. 1 and will be credited to customers' accounts retroactively.

The General Services Administration (GSA) awarded the FTS2000/Bridge contract to Sprint to allow agencies such as the Department of Justice to continue to take advantage of the low prices and high-quality service offered by Sprint on its 10-year FTS2000 contract, which expired December 1998. Sprint subsequently won the FTS2001 contract, which called for substantially lower pricing and state-of-the-art telecommunications technology.

Federal agencies have begun the transition to FTS2001 and are reaping the benefits of the contract's lower pricing. With Monday's announcement, these customers will also be able to receive the lower prices for services they plan to transition in the coming months.

"This is great news for long term Sprint customers and for the American taxpayer," said Frank Lalley, assistant commissioner for service delivery at the GSA's Federal Technology Service. "It will free up funds so customers may make new investments to meet growing needs for network services. Taxpayers will benefit from lower costs and better access to government."

Sprint is a global communications company -- at the forefront of integrating long- distance, local and wireless communications services, and one of the largest carriers of Internet traffic. Sprint built and operates the United States' first nationwide all-digital, fiber-optic network and is a leader in advanced data communications services. Sprint has $17 billion in annual revenues and serves more than 20 million business and residential customers.