FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Clearwire Brings Wireless Broadband Internet Service to Tri-Cities, Frees Customers from Confines of Traditional Internet Access

Reliable Broadband Provider Launches First Washington Market, Creates Alliance With Mid-Columbia Reading Foundation

KENNEWICK, Wash. (August 17, 2005) — Clearwire officially launched its wireless broadband Internet service in the Tri-Cities area today when company and community leaders cut through a ribbon of coaxial cable and telephone cord at a celebratory reception at Stone Ridge. The Tri-Cities are the first in Washington to receive the company’s innovative service. The company celebrates its launch by announcing a local alliance with the Mid-Columbia Reading Foundation.

“The Tri-Cities now have a better choice for broadband Internet service that’s simple, flexible and affordable,” said Bill Dochnahl, Clearwire’s general manager of Tri-Cities. “Clearwire will break down the barriers of traditional broadband service, offering consumer high-speed Internet without wires,” added Bill Snoeberger, vice president of small markets.

Snoeberger, Dochnahl, Tri-Cities Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Kris Johnson, Lockheed Martin Information Technology Director and General Manager Frank Armijo and Mid-Columbia Reading Foundation Vice President Judy Connell then cut through the cables with several pairs of large wire cutters.

At the event, Clearwire announced it has formed a unique partnership with the Mid-Columbia Reading Foundation and presented them with a $2,500 donation to benefit their community and classroom programs.  Additionally, the foundation’s staff will utilize Clearwire’s internet service in their administrative offices and their mobile educational vehicle – the Ben Franklin Transit Story Bus.  The Bus will appear at school and community special events such as Spring Into Safety, River Fest, Dust Devil’s games and First Night, among others, allowing children to access the foundation’s reading programs via the internet.

“One of the things we like to do as soon as we come into a community is find a way to give back in a meaningful way,” said Dochnahl. “Because of the significant impact the Mid-Columbia Reading Foundation has on improving childhood literacy here in the Tri-Cities area, we felt we could best give back to the community by supporting its efforts.”

“We believe this contribution will be a great starting point for developing an ongoing partnership with the Mid-Columbia Reading Foundation,” Dochnahl added.

Clearwire deploys a next-generation, non-line-of-sight (NLOS) technology that allows customers to connect to the internet via a signal sent across the airwaves rather than across wires. The company sends the signal from a transmitter to a specially developed receiver box that plugs into the customer’s computer instead of connecting to traditional coaxial cable or telephone wires. Customers simply plug the receiver into an electrical outlet and into their computer to gain high-speed access to the Internet from any room inside or outside their home or office.

“Clearwire is ‘next-generation’ broadband – wireless broadband internet service delivered to the consumer in a manner that is easier to get, set up and use than other options currently offered,” said Dochnahl.

Anyone can purchase Clearwire service at select local retailers, take it home, set it up and be online in minutes. It’s plug-and-play installation – no need for a technician to configure additional hardware and no need for software to be loaded onto computers to make it work. In addition, customers can move the service from place to place inside Clearwire’s coverage area, allowing them to use it throughout their home, office or favorite coffee house. As long as there is a power source, Internet access is available.

“We’ve already heard so many great stories about how Clearwire is changing the way people live and work,” said Dochnahl. “We have realtors who access their email and listings while showing homes, small business owners who cut their Internet costs in half by taking their Clearwire modem with them to work in the morning and home with them at night, and homeowners who enjoy moving their service from room to room in their home wherever there is an electrical outlet.”

Clearwire service is currently available to approximately 57,000 households in the Tri-Cities. The service is sold at several authorized retailers in the area, at Clearwire’s sales center at 7601 W. Clearwater Ave., Suite 102, toll free at 888-CLEARWIRE and online at clearwire.com.

The Tri-Cities are the latest to receive Clearwire’s service as part of the company’s expansion to cities across the United States.

“We’re excited about providing the area residents and small business owners reliable, wireless broadband-speed Internet access with flexibility they’ve never had before,” said Snoeberger. “Clearwire eliminates the limitations of traditional broadband services, offering a more consumer-friendly Internet experience. And, of course, we’re pleased to be launching our Tri-Cities coverage area of Kennewick, Richland and Pasco, Washington, and the surrounding areas of Prosser, Washington and Pendleton and Hermiston, Oregon.”

Clearwire is led by Craig McCaw, one of the early pioneers in providing cellular phone service in the United States in the early 1980s. His company, McCaw Cellular, grew to be the largest U.S. cellular service provider and was later acquired by AT&T.

Clearwire drew national attention in the summer of 2004 when it announced it would deploy wireless broadband technology in select markets across the country. Since then, Clearwire has launched service in Jacksonville and Daytona Beach, Fla., Abilene, Midland and Odessa, Texas; St. Cloud, Duluth and Central Minn.; Eau Claire, Wis.; Medford, Eugene and Roseburg, Ore.; as well as Modesto, Stockton, Visalia and Merced, Calif.

About Clearwire
Clearwire is a provider of reliable, wireless, high-speed broadband Internet service to consumers and small businesses. Clearwire is utilizing next-generation, non-line-of-sight wireless technology, developed by its subsidiary company NextNet Wireless, to connect customers to the Internet using radio spectrum, thus eliminating the confines of traditional cable or phone wiring. The tower transmits radio signals from a base site to a small, wireless modem the size of a paperback book, which easily connects a user’s computer to the Internet. For more information, visit clearwire.com.