PACW PacWest Bancorp

Pac-West Telecomm Announces Launch of VoiceSource Enables Service Providers to Cost-Effectively Deliver Next Generation Voice Services STOCKTON, Calif., Feb. 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pac-West Telecomm, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACW), a provider of communications services in the Western U.S., today announced the launch of VoiceSource. Targeted at carriers, cable operators, and providers of enhanced services, such as VoIP, VoiceSource provides a single source for the key components required to deliver IP-based local phone service, including local telephone numbers, access to the public switched telephone network (PSTN), and the ability to update end-user information in industry telephone databases such as E911 and directory listing services. "VoiceSource is a continuation of our service provider growth strategy," said Hank Carabelli, Pac-West's President and CEO. "It leverages our unique network infrastructure to facilitate the rapid convergence of IP networks with the PSTN, provide a more cost-effective alternative to the incumbent carriers, and enable our customers to deliver next-generation services which can accelerate their growth strategies and streamline their operations." Carabelli continued, "Pac-West is the only communications provider in California that provides local access in virtually 100% of the state. Our local access coverage in California is larger than SBC's and Verizon's combined. In addition to coverage, through VoiceSource we provide customers with the network services, regulatory expertise, and operational back-office support services required to deliver IP-based local phone service. VoiceSource creates a more efficient and cost-effective alternative to building and maintaining their own infrastructure or working with the incumbent carriers." Covad Communications Group, Inc., a leading national provider of integrated voice and data communications, was one of the first service providers to sign up for VoiceSource. Covad uses VoiceSource for two-way PSTN connectivity and access to the industry telephone databases required to deliver Covad VoIP, its nationwide business-class broadband service. Jeff Ahlquist, Vice President of product development and management for Covad, commented, "Pac-West's VoiceSource solution enabled us to effectively accelerate roll-out and growth of our VoIP offering." According to a recent Infonetics Research report titled, "Service Provider Plans for Next Gen Voice 2004," analyst Kevin Mitchell reports that 94 percent of carrier respondents will offer hosted IP voice solutions for residential and business markets by April 2005 - up from about half in 2004. Mitchell also notes that VoIP is seeing uptake beyond bleeding-edge adopters, "It's no longer just specialists or VoIP pioneers, but all types of carriers in all regions of the world that are adopting VoIP technology and using it to build a new set of service offerings." Pac-West's VoiceSource includes three components: PSTN On Ramp, Network Database Services (NDS), and Driver's Seat. PSTN On Ramp, which was launched in September of 2004, includes origination and termination, local access numbers, and two-way connectivity; NDS enables customers to update end-user information in industry telephone databases; and Driver's Seat, Pac-West's secure Web portal, enables customers to manage their VoiceSource account online, including ordering local access numbers, activating end-users, updating industry telephone databases, and viewing billing and call detail records. For more information on VoiceSource, please visit http://www.pacwest.com/voicesource. About Pac-West Telecomm, Inc. Pac-West is currently one of the largest competitive local exchange carriers headquartered in California. Pac-West's network averages over 120 million minutes of voice and data traffic per day, and carries an estimated 20% of the dial-up Internet traffic in California. In addition to California, Pac-West has operations in Nevada, Washington, Arizona, and Oregon. For more information, please visit Pac-West's website at http://www.pacwest.com/. Pac-West Forward-Looking Statements In this press release, our use of the words "outlook," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "forecast," "project," "likely," "objective," "plan," "designed," "goal," "target," and similar expressions is intended to identify forward-looking statements. While these statements represent our current judgment on what the future may hold, and we believe these judgments are reasonable, actual results may differ materially due to numerous important risk factors that are described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 2003, as filed with the SEC on March 30, 2004, which may be revised or supplemented in subsequent reports filed by us with the SEC. Such risk factors include, but are not limited to: our substantial indebtedness; an inability to generate sufficient cash to service our indebtedness; regulatory and legal uncertainty with respect to intercarrier compensation payments received by us; the declining rate at which intercarrier compensation payments are determined; the inability to expand our business as a result of the unavailability of funds to do so; adverse affects on our operations as a result of covenants in agreements related to our borrowings; the loss of key executive officers could negatively impact our business prospects; the possible delisting of our common shares from the Nasdaq SmallCap Market; and our principal competitors for local services and potential additional competitors have advantages that may adversely affect our ability to compete with them. DATASOURCE: Pac-West Telecomm, Inc. CONTACT: Reid Cox of Pac-West Telecomm, Inc., +1-209-926-3417, or Web site: http://www.pacwest.com/

Copyright