Sage Telecom Signs Wholesale Services Agreement with Verizon to Expand Texas Operations

Business Wire, March 28, 2006

DALLAS -- Sage Telecom today announced that it has entered into its first agreement with Verizon, a commercial agreement to obtain wholesale local phone services. This new multi-year agreement with Verizon will help Sage serve communities in Texas that are outside the reach of Sage's existing service area -- and elsewhere throughout the Verizon footprint nationally.

Sage is one of the largest competitive local exchange carriers focused on residential and small business customers in suburban and rural communities. The company currently serves a half-million customers across twelve states. The commercial agreement with Verizon represents another step towards extending Sage services to benefit consumers in underserved markets.

"We are committed to offering a quality choice for local, long distance, and Internet access services," said Terry Lewis, president and CEO of Sage. "This new agreement is a significant move in expanding our service territory to include households and businesses within the Verizon footprint." The company expects to begin offering services to additional Texas communities by June. Texas was Sage's first state of operation and is the home to over 130,000 of the company's customers.

About Sage Telecom

Sage Telecom, Inc. provides local, long distance and Internet access services to residential and small business customers primarily in underserved rural areas and suburban markets. Founded in 1997, the company is known for providing unparalleled customer service and innovative, competitively-priced offerings. Sage Telecom's serving areas include Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas and Wisconsin. For more information about Sage Telecom services, call 1-888-972-7243 or visit Sage Telecom at www.sagetelecom.net.