Sprint Marks Major Accessibility Milestone: Opens its First CapTel Call Center Outside of the United States for Hearing Loss Community

Call center in New Zealand opens with ceremonial call from country’s Communications & IT Minister

Captions of phone conversations makes telecommunications more inclusive

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (BUSINESS WIRE), April 05, 2013 – Sprint (NYSE:S, news, filings), a leader in wireless accessibility, announced another milestone in the company’s effort to enable telecommunications for all. Sprint opened the first CapTel call center outside of the United States in Auckland, New Zealand. CapTel service provides captioned conversations for people with hearing loss.

Sprint marked the opening of the call center with a ceremonial call from Amy Adams, New Zealand communications and information technology minister, to Louise Carol, a New Zealand resident with hearing loss for the past 20 years.

With a special CapTel phone, users can read what the caller is saying while listening with their residual hearing. CapTel service breaks down barriers by enabling people who have hearing difficulty to enjoy telephone access.

“Collaborating with Sprint to provide CapTel service lifts telecommunications support for individuals with hearing loss to a whole new level,” said Adams, referencing the multiple relay services now available in New Zealand. “This positions New Zealand as a leader in providing telecommunications services that enable people with impaired hearing, speech and vision to participate on an equal basis with others.”

Sprint has provided relay services in New Zealand since 2004. Sprint’s long-standing relay partner, Communications Services for the Deaf (CSD), runs the call center in Auckland. “The collaboration ensures that relay users have a high-quality alternative to traditional telephone access,” said Mike Ellis, director-Relay Services for Sprint.

Sprint has long been a leader in accessibility for all customers and has been the nation’s premier provider of Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS) for the past 22 years. Sprint is the TRS provider in 30 states and for the federal government. For more information about Sprint’s commitment to people with disabilities, visit the Accessibility for All page on sprint.com or www.sprintrelay.com.

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 55 million customers at the end of 2012 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. The American Customer Satisfaction Index rated Sprint No. 1 among all national carriers in customer satisfaction and most improved, across all 47 industries, during the last four years. Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 3 in both its 2011 and 2012 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.