Verizon Business, a premier provider of global communications and information technology (IT) solutions, today announced that Invoice Insight ranks it tops among major telecom vendors for electronic billing excellence.

Invoice Insight, a leading provider of expense management software for large enterprises and federal agencies, recently reported the results of its annual evaluation of vendors that support telecom electronic data interchange (EDI) invoicing. EDI allows for the automated exchange of data between trading partners. [Read more…]

HickoryTech Corporation (Nasdaq: HTCO) announced today that its board of directors has declared a regular quarterly dividend of 12 cents per share, payable June 5, 2006 to shareholders of record May 15, 2006. The company has a long history of paying quarterly cash dividends. HickoryTech Corporation has total assets of $223.3 million and operates a telecommunications business with operations in Minnesota and Iowa. [Read more…]

Sage Telecom today announced that it has entered into its first agreement with Verizon, a commercial agreement to obtain wholesale local phone services. This new multi-year agreement with Verizon will help Sage serve communities in Texas that are outside the reach of Sage’s existing service area — and elsewhere throughout the Verizon footprint nationally.

Sage is one of the largest competitive local exchange carriers focused on residential and small business customers in suburban and rural communities. The company currently serves a half-million customers across twelve states. The commercial agreement with Verizon represents another step towards extending Sage services to benefit consumers in underserved markets.

“We are committed to offering a quality choice for local, long distance, and Internet access services,” said Terry Lewis, president and CEO of Sage. “This new agreement is a significant move in expanding our service territory to include households and businesses within the Verizon footprint.” The company expects to begin offering services to additional Texas communities by June. Texas was Sage’s first state of operation and is the home to over 130,000 of the company’s customers.

About Sage Telecom
Sage Telecom, Inc. provides local, long distance and Internet access services to residential and small business customers primarily in underserved rural areas and suburban markets. Founded in 1997, the company is known for providing unparalleled customer service and innovative, competitively-priced offerings. Sage Telecom’s serving areas include Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas and Wisconsin. For more information about Sage Telecom services, call 1-888-972-7243 or visit Sage Telecom at www.sagetelecom.net.

HGTelekom, a leading provider of results-oriented training programs for telecommunications and high technology companies worldwide, today announced that it has joined the OSS through Javaâ„¢ (OSS/J) Initiative, a working group of telecommunications industry leaders that provides standards-based Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and design guidelines for the development of component-based OSS systems. As a member of the OSS/J Initiative, HGTelekom will create a portfolio of OSS/J training courses targeting the knowledge requirements of telecommunication management, system architects, and developers. [Read more…]

According to a new study by Dittberner, three categories of Fixed Mobile Convergence (FMC) services will be the most popular in the near future, potentially competing with “all mobile” solutions (Fixed mobile substitution). Services based on dual-mode terminals (3G and WLAN); Set or programmable automatic call forwarding (“follow-me”); Home-zone pricing schemes. [Read more…]

NeoMedia Technologies, Inc. (OTC BB: NEOM) an innovator in market-driven technologies, said today that it has completed the acquisition of BSD Software Inc. (OTC BB: BSDS) and its operating entity, Triton Global Services, accelerating the launch of its NeoMedia Telecom Services business unit. The acquisition, the fifth closed by NeoMedia since February and its first in the telecom industry, was an all-stock transaction, with BSD shareholders receiving approximately $2.5 million in NeoMedia shares. NeoMedia and BSD/Triton had filed a joint registration/information statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission prior to the closing. [Read more…]