Continental Airlines Selects AT&T For Toll-Free Services

HOUSTON -- AT&T has won a $15 million networking contract from Continental Airlines for toll-free services and call center solutions to connect Continental with customers making reservations, changing seat assignments, and checking flight arrivals and departures.

Continental, the fifth largest airline in the United States, has won more awards for customer satisfaction than any other airline. Market research conducted by Continental confirms that an airline's ability to provide efficient service is a key differentiator for customers when choosing a carrier.

"We often tell our team that our customer's initial contact with a customer service representative influences their impression of the entire company, but important messages are sent before anyone even answers the phone," said Martin Hand, vice president of reservation operations. "With AT&T's help, we will handle more calls more quickly, thereby reducing hold times and living up to the expectations of our customers."

Continental will deploy AT&T Toll Free Services to support its three U.S.-based contact centers staffed by thousands of agents. The solution integrates AT&T's network-based technology with Intelligent Contact Management software solutions from Cisco Systems.

By combining Toll Free Advanced Features such as AT&T Resource Manager with AT&T Intelligent Call Processing service, incoming calls are automatically routed to the best available answering resource, given current conditions. AT&T's advanced features recognize repeat callers, so representatives gain immediate access to customer records, providing callers with faster service.

AT&T also will provide Continental with frame relay and private line services.

AT&T recently received Frost & Sullivan's 2003 Product Line Strategy award for toll-free services. The industry analyst firm recognized AT&T as a market leader that offers a robust toll-free portfolio and effectively addresses changing market demands.
About Continental Airlines

Continental Airlines is the world's sixth-largest airline with more than 2,800 daily departures throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. Continental serves 149 domestic and 117 international destinations -- more than any other airline in the world -- and nearly 200 additional points are served via codeshare partner airlines. With 41,000 mainline employees, the airline has hubs serving New York, Houston, Cleveland and Guam, and carries approximately 51 million passengers per year. For more company information, visit continental.com.

About AT&T

For more than 125 years, AT&T (NYSE "T") has been known for unparalleled quality and reliability in communications. Backed by the research and development capabilities of AT&T Labs, the company is a global leader in local, long distance, Internet and transaction-based voice and data services.