Socket Catapults Into St. Louis Telecom Market

St. Louis, Mo. Socket, a Missouri-based telephone and Internet provider, has quickly built an impressive base of St. Louis area customers after a notable entrance into the metro local and long-distance telecommunication service arena.

Within the first several months of competing in the St. Louis business telecommunications market, Socket inked deals with some of St. Louis' most recognizable businesses. Included on the list are Lou Fusz Automotive Group, U.S. Title, Coldwell Banker Gundaker, Peoples National Bank and Marshall Ford.

"We had seen incredible success and growth with our telecom services through the heart of the state," said Carson Coffman, co-owner of Socket. "We felt one of our next steps would be to make an impact on the business community in St. Louis and surrounding areas. Our success here shows we were and are on the right track."

Socket has been providing customized, state-of-the-art telephone services to business clients, primarily in the mid-Missouri region, for several years. Socket's business clients expect reliable local, long-distance and custom voice applications with features such as caller ID, direct inward dial, voice mail and more. Customers keep their current phone numbers, and with the help of Socket's engineers and technical support team, the switch is virtually seamless. Clients can also choose to bundle their telephone communications with Internet, Web hosting and data networking into one competitive package.

Socket began offering business telephone service in the fall of 2004 and experienced rapid growth through its introductory year. By year-end 2006, Socket had doubled its phone line count and added clients in twelve new markets. As of fourth quarter 2007, Socket's telephone service coverage exploded to more than 113 Missouri markets. That coverage makes Socket the only competitive telephone company to challenge all three incumbent phone companies, AT&T, Embarq and CenturyTel.

Business owners and IT directors interested in taking a fresh look at their company's communication needs call on Socket to evaluate what other choices are available to them, often for the first time. Companies with multiple sites are attracted to Socket's expansive state-wide coverage for consolidation of service at each location to one telephone company.

"Part of our success is that Socket is one of the first real competitors to enter this market against the incumbent telecom companies," said Coffman. "We are not a Vonage-style shop like some telecom competitors. As a regulated carrier, we have to meet the same 99.99999% uptime standards AT&T and CenturyTel must meet. Competition is an integral part of any thriving business community and Socket offers these businesses a choice. We're offering better telecommunication solutions tailor-made to fit each client, and we're saving companies money in the process."

Socket recruited a team of seasoned telecom executives who live and work in the community and whose sole focus is the St. Louis business market. Socket also uses a team of independent telecom agents across Missouri to manage its business development. Early successes led the business development team to explore even more ways to expand. They are currently looking to set up local office space in the St. Louis area and will continue to add to the local team.

Founded in 1994, Socket is the largest Missouri-based telephone and Internet service provider in the state. Socket is a privately held company that provides business customers a choice for local and long-distance phone service. It combines the highest quality customer service with in-depth technical knowledge to provide customized phone service packages. Socket also provides high-speed DSL and accelerated dial-up Internet service to both business and residential clients. For additional information, please visit: http://www.socket.net.