Sprint Awarded New Contract from State of Wyoming to Provide Relay Services for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Community

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (BUSINESS WIRE), July 22, 2011 – The state of Wyoming has selected Sprint (NYSE:S, news, filings), one of the leading providers of Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS), to provide a full suite of relay products and services to the state for two years, beginning Aug. 1.

Sprint Relay service in Wyoming will allow hearing callers and users of text-telephone (TTY), CapTel and Speech to Speech (STS) to communicate with one another through trained Relay Operators, particularly when the hearing party does not have specialized telecommunications equipment.

“The selection of Sprint was a result of our commitment to provide to the citizens of Wyoming the best relay service available, which is also cost-effective,” said Lori Cielinski, telecommunications relay service consultant for the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation.

Sprint will collaborate with the state’s staff to provide outreach services to all potential users. One specific outreach goal is to continue to increase awareness of relay services among hearing users and businesses. Because of misconceptions that relay services are telephone marketing services, businesses often hang up on relay callers. To defuse this misconception, Sprint has developed an awareness campaign called “Please, Don’t Hang Up,” to educate key businesses, such as banks, hospitals, medical clinics, government agencies and service industries, on relay services.

In addition, Sprint Relay will employ a comprehensive outreach program to make Wyoming residents aware of new telecommunications relay features under development, such as video relay services, Internet relay and Wireless relay.

“Sprint Relay is thrilled to be chosen as the provider of Wyoming Relay,” said Mike Ellis, director-Sprint Relay. “It has been our goal for the past 20 years to continue improving the quality of our relay services and allowing individuals with hearing loss and speech disabilities access to the telephone. Wyoming’s selection of Sprint is a great vote of confidence for the type of relay service we’re committed to providing.”.

For more information on Wyoming’s relay service, call 1-888-694-4450.

With the addition of Wyoming, Sprint now provides relay service to 32 states and the federal government, in addition to New Zealand and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. With the addition of Wyoming, Sprint also provides Captioned Telephone “CapTel” services to 31 states and the federal government.

About Sprint Relay

Sprint is the largest and most technologically advanced TRS provider in the nation with more than 20 years of experience in providing relay services to persons who are deaf, hard of hearing, deaf-blind, or have a speech disability to communicate with hearing persons on the phone. Sprint’s experience in this field ensures Sprint Relay users receive quality service regardless of the type of relay service they are using. Sprint’s relay service is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, with no restrictions on the number of calls placed or the length of calls. For more information, visit www.sprintrelay.com.

About Sprint Nextel

Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 51 million customers at the end of 1Q 2011 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 6 in its 2010 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.