Press Release

HARRISBURG - The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) today granted Millenianet Corporation and Remi Retail Communications licenses to telecommunications companies to provide basic local telephone service in the Commonwealth.

The companies are part of more than 200 competitive local exchange carriers (CLEC) with authority to operate in Pennsylvania. The state’s 1993 telecommunications law, called Chapter 30, and the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 were designed to open the local phone market to competition.

The PUC determined that the companies had sufficient technical, financial and managerial resources to provide local telephone service. The Commission granted the certificates of public convenience conditioned on the companies complying with all provisions of the Public Utility Code.

Pennsylvania-based Millenianet Corporation will provide facilities-based local services in non-rural areas primarily to residential and business customers in Verizon, Verizon North and Sprint/United service territories.

Remi Retail Communications, a Delaware-based company, said it would provide local resold and facilities-based services in non-rural areas to business customers in Verizon and Verizon North service territories.

CLECs compete with local phone companies by packaging services and offering customers pricing plans tailored to their needs. Typical business services include direct inward dialing, call forwarding and transfer, and call pickup and intercom. Residential services include, for example, call waiting, caller-ID and speed dialing. CLECs may also sell cellular phone service.

Companies reach their customers in several ways. They can use the existing phone network to purchase services from the local phone company at wholesale rates approved by the PUC and then resell the services to their customers. Some decide to build a new network and install telephone lines to connect to their customers. Others use a combination of the methods by leasing parts of the existing system and interconnecting the telecommunications equipment of the two companies.

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission ensures safe, reliable and reasonably priced electric, natural gas, water, telephone and transportation service for Pennsylvania consumers, by regulating public utilities and by serving as responsible stewards of competition.