Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Nextel Makes History with Nationwide Direct Connect--The Longest Range Digital Walkie-Talkie

From: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 02 Jun 2003 14:32:03 -0400

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Press Release

Source:
Nextel Communications, Inc.

Nextel Makes History with Nationwide Direct Connect--The Longest Range Digital Walkie-Talkie
Monday June 2, 8:15 am ET

Coast-to-Coast Service to be Available by Mid-June in More than 50 Percent of Nextel Markets including New England, Florida, California, New York, Maryland, Washington DC, Virginia and the Pacific Northwest

RESTON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 2, 2003--
National Roll-out to be Completed in August

Nextel Communications Inc. (NASDAQ:NXTL - News), Nextel Partners
(NASDAQ:NXTP - News) and Motorola (NYSE:MOT - News) announced that Nationwide Direct
Connect(TM), the first and only wireless walkie-talkie service to
allow users instant communication across the country, will begin
rolling out today.

ADVERTISEMENT

More than 50 percent of the markets supported by Nextel and Nextel
Partners will be enabled for Nationwide Direct Connect service by June
16, 2003. Nextel and Nextel Partners plan to make this nationwide
service available in all of its coverage areas, including Hawaii.

Built more than 10 years ago with a foundation to support Direct
Connect(TM) technology, the Nextel National Network is scalable to
allow efficient expansion for services such as Nationwide Direct
Connect, while providing an identical end-user experience to the
original service.

"Nationwide Direct Connect is a technological breakthrough that
facilitates instant communication throughout our coverage areas -
extending Nextel's undeniable leadership in instant communications,"
said Nextel Executive Vice President and COO Tom Kelly. "Nationwide
Direct Connect delivers on our strategy of being first, being
different and being better than the competition. This new service will
enhance the productivity of nearly 12 million subscribers - especially
those in transportation, business services, government, construction
and real estate."

"Our customers have come to depend on walkie-talkie communication
within their local areas and now they have the added benefit of being
able to instantly reach each other across the country," said John
Chapple, president, CEO and chairman of Nextel Partners.

Among the first Nextel markets to offer customers this service are
New England, Florida, and southern California. By June 16, New York,
Baltimore, Washington DC, Virginia, the Pacific Northwest, northern
California and Atlanta are also expected to be Nationwide Direct
Connect enabled.

Nextel customers in these markets will be able to connect in less
than a second between any of the cities within these areas, simply by
using the push-to-talk button located on the side of every Motorola
phone offered by Nextel.

The first phase of Nationwide Direct Connect, initially announced
in January of 2003, allows Nextel users to travel with the Direct
Connect service and instantly connect with anyone local to the area to
which they have traveled, as well as with any other Nextel customers
who have traveled with them.

The traveling functionality remains enabled with the launch of
phase two nationwide service, allowing Nextel users to connect to
anywhere, from anywhere on Nextel's National Network. When the launch
of Nationwide Direct Connect is completed, instant walkie-talkie
communication will have a span of more than 5,000 miles.

Currently, more than 90 percent of Nextel customers use Direct
Connect, completing 170 million Direct Connect calls each day, for a
total of more than 60 billion calls in 2002.

"The instant, long-range communication that people will enjoy with
Nationwide Direct Connect will be a unique industry leading
experience," said Dan Coombes, senior vice president and general
manager of the iDEN and Wireless Local Area Networks Groups for
Motorola's Global Telecom Solutions Sector. "Motorola's proprietary
iDEN network, as well as Motorola's experience in walkie-talkie
communication ensure that this service remains in a class by itself."

"We are thrilled with the rollout of this service," said Karen
Arens, corporate office manager at Drees Homes in Ft. Mitchell,
Kentucky, a homebuilder with developments in seven states. "Many of
our employees deal with, subcontractors, suppliers and personnel in
the other states we build in and we're eager to get immediate answers
when and where we need to without playing voicemail tag. We look
forward to a continued business relationship with Nextel, who has
demonstrated true innovation with the launch of Nationwide Direct
Connect."

Pricing and Availability:

As an add-on to current rate plans, customers have various pricing
options for Nationwide Direct Connect:

Unlimited Nationwide Direct Connect for $10 per month
Unlimited Nationwide Direct Connect plus Two-Way Text
Messaging for $15 per month
Pay-as-you-go pricing

Customers can sign up for unlimited Nationwide Direct Connect
access by calling 800/NEXTEL9, contacting their Nextel representative,
or visiting nextel.com or a Nextel retail location.

Nextel's 4-in-1 offering is supported by Motorola's iDEN
(integrated digital enhanced network) technology. This unique offering
of digital cellular voice service, Nextel Direct Connect®--the
incredibly powerful long-range digital walkie-talkie feature, Nextel
Online® wireless data and messaging services provides an unmatched
set of services for the enterprise.

Motorola's iDEN technology allows business users to benefit from
advanced wireless technologies with one pocket-sized digital handset.

About Nextel

Nextel Communications, a Fortune 300 company based in Reston, Va.,
is a leading provider of fully integrated wireless communications
services and has built the largest guaranteed all-digital wireless
network in the country covering thousands of communities across the
United States. Nextel and Nextel Partners, Inc., currently serve 198
of the top 200 U.S. markets.

Through recent market launches, Nextel and Nextel Partners service
is available today in areas of the U.S. where approximately 240
million people live or work.

About Nextel Partners

Nextel Partners, Inc., (NASDAQ:NXTP - News) based in Kirkland, Wash., has
the exclusive right to provide digital wireless communications
services using the Nextel brand name in 31 states where approximately
53 million people reside.

About Motorola and iDEN

Motorola, Inc. is a global leader in providing integrated
communications and embedded electronic solutions. Sales in 2002 were
$27.3 billion. Motorola is a global corporate citizen dedicated to
ethical business practices and pioneering important technologies that
make things smarter and life better for people, honored traditions
that began when the company was founded 75 years ago this year.

For more information, please visit: www.motorola.com.

iDEN handsets combine the capabilities of a digital wireless phone
with "always on" Internet access, text pager, and two-way radio to
enable users to instantly communicate with one or hundreds of
individuals at the push of a button. For further information on iDEN
handsets, visit www.motorola.com/iden.

Contact:

Nextel Communications, Inc., Reston
Media:
Rebecca Gertsmark, 703/433-3776
[email-masked]
or
Rich Pesce, 703/433-4927
[email-masked]
or
Investors:
Paul Blalock, 703/433-4300
[email-masked]

Source:
Nextel Communications, Inc.
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