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Pennsylvania Wraps Up Massive Telecom Project

Rural businesses, as well as the state's higher education system, will be able to use the new Keystone Communications network.

HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Gov. Mark Schweiker said on Friday that the state and its partners finished work on the Keystone Communications network.

"The vision of the Keystone Communications network was to leverage the commonwealth's considerable buying power to reduce telecommunications costs to taxpayers and foster more competition within Pennsylvania," Gov. Schweiker said. "Successful completion of this project means Pennsylvania residents save tens of millions of dollars in reduced and avoided costs; state government has a dramatically enhanced telecommunications system; and the commonwealth has more telecommunications competition."

As part of its agreement with Pennsylvania, Adelphia Business Solutions (ABS) and the consortium of 13 Pennsylvania companies it leads have completed a network of 5,000 fiber-optic miles that state agencies and the state's system of higher education will use for voice, video, Internet and data services.

The consortium, comprised of such companies as EDS, Comcast Cable, Marconi Communications and Qwest, will continue to provide services to Pennsylvania under the agreement through 2006.

In the past, officials said, Pennsylvania state government used a dedicated network to provide telecommunication services to state agencies. With the new Keystone Communications network, telecom services to state government will be provided over the public telecommunications network, enabling businesses and communities to access the same advanced telecom services available to state offices.

"Thousands of Pennsylvanians in rural and underserved communities -- those that previously had limited or no access to high bandwidth Internet communications -- now will be able to tap into the Keystone Communications network," Schweiker said. "The economic-development and quality-of-life benefits for these residents and communities will be significant."

Office of Gov. Mark Schweiker