BEDMINSTER, N.J. -- AT&T today announced Frost & Sullivan has selected AT&T as the recipient of its 2005 Product Line Strategy Award within the Managed Telecom Services Markets, recognizing the company for its unparalleled breadth and continued investment in its product portfolio.  AT&T also has received the 2005 Frost & Sullivan Award for Ethernet Services Market Leadership.

In its assessment of the Managed Telecom Services Market, Frost & Sullivan said, “AT&T offers one of the most comprehensive suites of managed services to enterprise customers.” 

“AT&T continues to strengthen its managed services portfolio in both breadth and depth to meet the complex needs of our global business customers,” said Michael Antieri, group executive for AT&T Product Management.  “We’re pleased that Frost & Sullivan recognizes these ongoing efforts to provide today’s global enterprises with a valuable array of managed services capabilities.”

“AT&T should be proud of the scope and depth of its managed services offerings,” said Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Imran Khan.  “It excels at offering its customers extended global reach; breadth of managed services, and a robust security portfolio.  In addition, the company’s efforts to address the needs of the large, multi-national enterprise market and its consultative approach to selling are market-leading assets that will further strengthen the company into the future.”

The report completed its managed services assessment by characterizing the AT&T BusinessDirect® portal as the company’s customer care initiative “designed to empower customers to manage their various AT&T services and accounts.”

Frost & Sullivan also designated AT&T the market leader in its recently published report on the Metropolitan Area Network Services Markets.

“AT&T has retained its market leadership position consistently in the Ethernet services market,” Frost & Sullivan noted in its report.  “The company has received this award based on a number of achievements, including its success in meeting the diverse needs of large enterprises and wholesale carriers that it partners with.”

According to the report, AT&T is recognized for having one of the most reliable global networks and for its ability to stay at the cutting edge of innovation and technology.  The report also notes AT&T’s broad suite of Metropolitan Ethernet offerings for enterprises and carriers, and AT&T’s efforts to expand its Ethernet portfolio with products, such as Ethernet access to Multi Protocol Label Switching-based Virtual Private Networks or Frame Relay services.

“AT&T has a committed investment in Ethernet as a key technology in the networking solutions we design, deploy, manage and evolve for our customers,” said Rich Klapman, group manager for AT&T Converged Packet Access Services.  “Whether your business requires high-speed access for small branch offices or mission-critical data centers or end-to-end connectivity between your locations, AT&T has an Ethernet solution.”

AT&T’s Ethernet Services provide reliable, cost-effective solutions to meet the data networking needs for business locations needing as little as 512 Kbps to as much as 1 Gbps of bandwidth.  AT&T will design and implement a flexible Ethernet connectivity service that meets budget, network performance and business continuity requirements.

AT&T has built an extensive Ethernet local service footprint with many buildings already “On-Net.”  The company offers Ethernet services in 91 cities through 67 Metropolitan Service Areas and its local network infrastructure exceeds 21,000 metro fiber route miles.

“AT&T is a strong well-rounded carrier in the Ethernet market,” said Frost & Sullivan Research Analyst Vinod Ramanathan.  “The company has shown remarkable foresight and planning in designing a complete wholesome product suite to address every segment of the market.  In addition, AT&T’s investment in customer care and support, major upgrades to its network, and in extending its product line will pay real dividends to enterprise users, such as solutions for growth areas like application-aware networking, security and VoIP.

“Frost & Sullivan would like to congratulate AT&T on its fantastic performance and leadership over the last few years in the Ethernet services market,” Ramanathan said.

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