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Zurvita Launches New Video Phone Service

TREVOSE, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- WorldGate (OTCBB: WGAT.OB), a leading provider of digital voice and video phone services and next generation video phones, has announced a new service provider agreement...

The Amacore Group, Inc., Announces Its Wholly-Owned Sales and Marketing Subsidiary, Zurvita, Inc., Has Signed an Exclusive Marketing Agreement with MXenergy Inc.

The Amacore Group, Inc., Announces Its Wholly-Owned Sales and Marketing Subsidiary, Zurvita, Inc., Has Signed an Exclusive Marketing Agreement with MXenergy Inc. The Amacore Group, Inc., (OTCBB:ACGI stock),...

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AT&T and Cell Phones for Soldiers Celebrate Two Years of Recycling and 3.6 Million Milestone to Support Military Families with Free Calls Print E-mail

Second Year of Recycling Work Connects Military Families with 350,000-Plus Free Phones Cards Both Empower Youth to Make a Difference for Military Families and the Environment

 

Dallas, Texas, July 1, 2009

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At more than 3.6 million recycled cell phones and counting since July 2007, Cell Phones for Soldiers (CPFS) and AT&T* are sharing fireworks with patriots, environmentalists, and young people across the country this Independence Day. Sparking more enthusiasm for the cause, the two are launching a new “double duty” advocacy campaign that empowers young people of all ages to make a difference this summer for military families and the environment by recycling wireless phones through social media and recycling drives.

CPFS uses the proceeds from recycling used wireless phones to buy free phone cards for military members away from home. Since July 2007, AT&T has been offering wireless users two simple ways to donate phones for the cause: Wireless customers of any carrier can drop off used cell phones and accessories at any of the 2,000-plus AT&T stores across the U.S. Or, they can download free shipping labels from www.att.com/recyclewireless.

In its second year of work with AT&T (July 2008-July 2009), CPFS has recycled more than 2.1 million phones, an increase of more than 43 percent versus the same time last year. And, the charity used its 2008-2009 recycling proceeds to send more than 350,000 prepaid phone cards to the troops to help them stay in touch with friends and family for free. AT&T and CPFS are celebrating the two-year anniversary in a few ways:

  • AT&T will continue to collect phones for recycling in all 2,000-plus retail locations through 2010. Partial proceeds from these collections will continue to support CPFS — and its mission to connect military families with free phone cards.
  • Through August 2009, AT&T and CPFS are working with the American Camp Association (ACA) to reach over 2 million children, tweens, and teens across the country with the patriotic and environmental cause. ACA outdoor camps are competing to collect the most phones and create the most environmentally friendly and most creative recycling bins.
  • AT&T volunteers are handing out roughly 20,000 free CPFS recycling mailer bags to visitors attending the AT&T National in Bethesda, Md., this week, giving golf fans an easy way to recycle old wireless devices after they depart from the event.
  • Recycling efforts with CPFS will also extend through AT&T-sponsored music festivals this summer and the Campus MovieFest this fall, which is estimated to reach more than a million college students across the country.

The two-year anniversary follows another recycling milestone: A successful Earth Day challenge. With AT&T, CPFS invited wireless customers to join the effort to recycle at least 1.8 million devices between Earth Day 2008 and Earth Day 2009. In that time, the charity collected more than 2.5 million wireless devices for recycling.

Recycling with ACA Campers

Recycling work with ACA-affiliated camps across the U.S. begins this month and runs through the end of the summer. Competing children and youths will create their own recycling bins and post photos of them to a dedicated online site. AT&T will also house key photos via its Flickr channel and Facebook page. The most environmentally friendly and the most creative bins will be recognized. CPFS teen founders will visit a camp at the close of the contest to recognize every camp’s recycling work, including the camp that recycles the most phones.

“It’s important for children and young people to know that they can make a difference,” said CPFS co-founder Brittany Bergquist. “Robbie and I are really glad we stuck with our idea for Cell Phones for Soldiers, especially when we hear from soldiers we’re working to support. We celebrate the ACA campers and the many AT&T leaders, employees and volunteers who are working with us to make a difference for the troops and the environment. It doesn’t have to be Independence Day or Earth Day or any other holiday to remember that recycling with us is helping people all over the world stay in touch with people they love.”

Since 2008, the AT&T Pioneers, a network of more than 300,000 AT&T volunteers has been working to expand the charity’s cell phone donation drives into communities across the U.S. Since last spring, volunteer efforts have generated more than 25,000 wireless phones for recycling, and volunteers continue to collect phones in corporate offices and community locations.

Free online tools are also available to support community groups and help individuals launch and conduct their own donation drives with a new electronic “starter kit,” available at www.att.com/recyclewireless.

For more information about AT&T’s efforts to support military families, please visit www.att.com/troopsupport.

For more information about AT&T’s sustainability efforts, please visit www.att.com/sustainability.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) is a premier communications holding company. Its subsidiaries and affiliates – AT&T operating companies – are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation’s fastest 3G network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet and voice services. AT&T offers the best wireless coverage worldwide, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verseSM and AT&T | DIRECTVSM brands. The company’s suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world. In domestic markets, AT&T’s Yellow Pages and YELLOWPAGES.COM organizations are known for their leadership in directory publishing and advertising sales. In 2009, AT&T again ranked No. 1 in the telecommunications industry on FORTUNE® magazine’s list of the World’s Most Admired Companies.

Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at http://www.att.com. This AT&T news release and other announcements are available at www.att.com/newsroom and as part of an RSS feed at www.att.com/rss. Or follow our news on Twitter at @ATTNews. Find us on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/ATT to discover more about our consumer and wireless services or at www.Facebook.com/ATTSmallBiz to discover more about our small business services.

© 2009 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. 3G service not available in all areas. AT&T, the AT&T logo and all other marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated companies.

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Wells Fargo/Gallup Survey: Despite Economic Stress, Business Owners Maintain Personal Pursuits Print E-mail

The economy is taking a toll on the day-to-day lives of business owners, but most said they still have a balance between their work and outside interests. The latest Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index, surveyed April 1-14, shows nearly one third (31 percent) of respondents said they’re working more hours than they used to. Three-quarters (76 percent) said they feel more stress due to the economy, and the majority (60 percent) said the economy has caused them to cancel or scale back vacations due to cost or to spend more time at work.

Despite that, 69 percent said they’re satisfied with the balance they strike between their work life and personal life, slightly more than when the question was last surveyed in 2005 (67 percent). While sixty- four percent said they work at least 50 hours a week (with almost a quarter of these saying they work 70 hours or more per week), many still find time for other interests: 63 percent said they have spent time on a hobby in the last 12 months, and 59 percent said they volunteered in their communities.

The Index is a quarterly survey of small business owners, about a timely trend or topic in the context of the current environment. It also is used to gauge small business owners’ ratings of the current situation of their businesses and how they expect their business to perform over the next 12 months. Results are based on telephone interviews with 602 small business owners nationwide conducted April 1-14.

“The Index provides insight into the lives of business owners and the challenges they face, especially in this difficult economy,” said David Pope, Wells Fargo Small Business Segment Manager. “This quarter’s Index survey results show us that while many business owners may be facing difficult times, they remain passionate about their businesses, while maintaining a satisfying balance between their work, personal interests and communities.”

About Gallup
For more than 70 years, Gallup has been a recognized leader in the measurement and analysis of people’s attitudes, opinions and behavior. While best known for the Gallup Poll, founded in 1935, Gallup’s current activities consist largely of providing marketing and management research, advisory services and education to the world’s largest corporations and institutions.

About Wells Fargo
Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified financial services company with $1.3 trillion in assets, providing banking, insurance, investments, mortgage and consumer finance through more than 10,400 stores, over 12,000 ATMs and the internet (wellsfargo.com) across North America and internationally.

Wells Fargo is America’s #1 small business lender in total dollar volume according to the most recent Community Reinvestment Act data (2007) and the #1 SBA 7a national bank lender in total dollar volume (2008). Wells Fargo has loaned close to $39 billion to women, African American, Latino and Asian business owners since 1995. For more information, speak with a Wells Fargo banker, visit wellsfargo.com/biz or call the National Business Banking Center at 1-800-CALL-WELLS. 
Note: Survey results available upon request.

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AT&T Launches the Women of Color Businesses (WOCB) Growth Initiative at the WBENC National Conference in San Francisco Print E-mail

AT&T* today announced that it is launching a year-long initiative that will mentor and coach a pilot group of small, women-owned business owners. The initiative was unveiled at the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council’s (WBENC) Women in Business conference:“The Bridge to Quality” in San Francisco, CA, where AT&T is a major sponsor. This annual national conference and business fair is the largest event of its kind in the nation for women’s business enterprises (WBEs).

AT&T is launching the WOCB Growth initiative to help participating WBEs develop the tools and strategies necessary to win large corporate contracts. A key component of the program will assist the small businesses in obtaining TL9000 quality certification through a unique webinar approach.

AT&T began the first phase of its initiative in 2007 when it sponsored the Center for Women Business Research’s (CFWBR) multiyear study called “Research to Roadmap: Accelerating the Growth of Businesses Owned By Women of Color”. The study showed that although minority-owned businesses are growing at exponential rates compared to all other groups, they lagged behind in success factors such as growing revenues and increasing employees.

AT&T is a long-standing partner, board of directors’ member, strong supporter and a founding member of WBENC, an organization that strives to increase contracting opportunities for women-owned businesses. AT&T has also been awarded WBENC’s America’s Top Corporations for Women’s Business Enterprises every year since the list’s inception 10 years ago for its efforts in breaking down barriers that impede women-owned businesses from gaining fair access to procurement opportunities.

“To succeed, AT&T must have quality strategies, leadership, processes and people,” said Joan Kerr, executive director of AT&T Global Supplier Diversity Programs. “We must also have quality suppliers to help us deliver best-in-class products and services to our customers. WBENC has been a great partner on this front, by helping us reach WBE’s and form beneficial supplier relationships, which is good for AT&T’s bottom line and, ultimately, for our customers as well .”

During the three-day event, WBEs, senior corporate executives, supplier diversity, procurement professionals, and government representatives had an opportunity to engage in a series of professional development opportunities that include networking activities, workshops, general sessions, and the Business Fair.

In addition to AT&T’s major sponsorship of WBENC’S conference and the launch of the WOCB initiative, AT&T president of Supply Chain and Fleet Operations, Tim Harden, served as a keynote speaker at WBENC’s Business Fair Breakfast. In addition, Joan Kerr was a panelist and moderator during the three-day conference. AT&T also hosted WEConnect International, an organization that certifies WBEs globally.

*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.

About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) is a premier communications holding company. Its subsidiaries and affiliates – AT&T operating companies – are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation’s fastest 3G network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet and voice services. AT&T offers the best wireless coverage worldwide, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verseSM and AT&T | DIRECTVSM brands. The company’s suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world. In domestic markets, AT&T’s Yellow Pages and YELLOWPAGES.COM organizations are known for their leadership in directory publishing and advertising sales. In 2009, AT&T again ranked No. 1 in the telecommunications industry on FORTUNE® magazine’s list of the World’s Most Admired Companies. Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at http://www.att.com.

© 2009 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. 3G service not available in all areas. AT&T, the AT&T logo and all other marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated companies.

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Industrial Communications Chooses to Walk Rather Than Talk Print E-mail
(1 vote, average: 5.00 out of 5)

Industrial Communications has significantly impacted the San Antonio community. Their business recipe ingredient of generosity provides an important lesson for everyone. Generosity comes in many shapes and sizes. Industrial Communications conducts food, clothing, and toy drives and participates in other forms of community activism, including yearly donations of radio communications equipment to the annual Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Day Dinner. For another example, this week Industrial Communications donated radios to the non-profit organization “Soldiers Angels,” which provides aid and comfort to military members and their families. These donated radios will be used at Fisher House, a home-away-from-home facility in San Antonio for the families of seriously ill or wounded patients receiving treatment at Brook Army Medical Center.

Industrial Communications’ proves that big generosity can come from a small company, and the consequences of their generosity are as significant as the circumstances are commonplace. The things that matter most are as likely to be discovered in the commonplace of each person’s daily life, as they are in the momentous events. Whether through their community activism or through their relations with employees and customers, Industrial Communications emerges as stewards of generosity that have served and continue to serve the welfare and vitality of the local community.

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Founded in 1952, Industrial Communications sells, services, and rents communications equipment throughout the United States. The owners, Hattie and Dick Poole, followed a simple recipe to grow their business – passion, integrity, hard work, and generosity. Their recipe worked. Today, Industrial Communications is a successful business with two locations in Texas and a main office in San Antonio. The company has significantly impacted the San Antonio community by providing communications solutions for customers throughout the city, including the San Antonio Spurs, The Alamo, Fort Sam Houston, Brook Army Medical Center, University Health Systems, Methodist Hospital, San Antonio Water Systems, CPS Energy, City of San Antonio Police and Fire Departments, and many others.

 

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