CHATTANOOGA, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 30, 2002-- Covista, Inc. (NASDAQ symbol: CVST - News) today announced the launch of a new residential long distance service that will be marketed to visitors on MSN (www.msnld.com), the most popular destination online reaching more that 270 million unique visitors each month.
Beginning today, MSN will act as the premier digital marketer for OneVoice Long Distance through a combination of ads across its network. Powered by Covista, Inc., this long distance residential service is offered to customers at a rate of $3.95 per month and 3.9 cents per minute (for U.S. domestic interstate calls). Intrastate and international services also are available at rates below the prevailing rates of other major carriers.
"MSN is in the business of providing consumers with a useful and valuable service, whether it's communicating online at the office or talking to family in the comfort of home," says Joanne Bradford, vice president of MSN. "Covista's cost-effective and reliable OneVoice service will offer customers just that and we are pleased to be working with them to provide more consumers with the opportunity to experience it through our creative marketing."
John Leach, Jr., Covista's President and Chief Executive Officer, added: "As a long distance provider with decades of experience, we are delighted to enter into an agreement with Microsoft Corporation where we can leverage MSN's vast customer base and industry leading media creativity to bring an affordable and reliable service to more consumers. With so much of our industry in turmoil we are proud to offer a stable and reliable telecommunications alternative. Covista, Inc. has devoted considerable time and resources over the last several years to build out our infrastructure with systems which support the requirements of an online community. We are committed to providing a service that is of the highest quality and the best value without confusing tricks and gimmicks."
NOTE: Microsoft and MSN are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
Covista, Inc. is a facilities-based long distance telecommunications, Internet and data services provider with a customer base which comprises the commercial, wholesale and residential market segments. Its products and services include a broad range of voice, data and Internet solutions, including long distance and toll-free services, calling cards, frame relay, Internet access, VPN, directory assistance and teleconferencing services. The wholesale division provides domestic and international termination services to carriers worldwide. Covista, Inc. currently owns and operates switches in New York City, Newark, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Dallas and Chattanooga, and has announced plans to expand to additional switch salesgroups in Minneapolis and Las Vegas. Covista, Inc.'s network operations center, call center and information technology facilities are in Chattanooga and monitor their switched network and coordinate the services provided.
Information relating to forward-looking statements:
This press release contains historical and forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements such as statements of either company's plans, objectives, expectations and intentions involve risks and uncertainties. The cautionary statements made in this release should be read as being applicable to all related statements wherever they appear. Statements containing terms such as "believes," "expects," "plans," "projects," "intends," "estimates," "anticipates," or similar terms, are considered to contain uncertainty and are forward-looking statements. The actual results could differ materially from those discussed. Factors that could contribute to such differences include: changes in market conditions and increased competition from other telecommunications and internet service providers, including wireless providers; government regulations; the volatile and competitive environment for internet telephony; advances in competitive products or technologies that could reduce demand for services; availability of transmission facilities; management of growth; customer concentration and attrition; the ability to successfully integrate acquired companies; the ability to successfully develop and bring new services to market; inaccurate or incomplete assumptions on the part of management; and other risks discussed in the respective company's SEC filings, including form 10-k and form 10-q, which can be accessed at the SEC web salesgroup at www.sec.gov.
Readers of this release should understand that it is not possible to predict or identify all such risk factors. Consequently, this list should not be considered a complete statement of all potential risks or uncertainties. Neither Microsoft nor Covista, Inc. assumes the obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as is required by applicable law.
D. L. Blackman & Co., New York
Diane Blackman/Lisa Hammer/Neil Alumkal
212/989-3646
dlblackmanandco@hotmail.com