Company Profile

History/Timeline

Cellular South, an industry pioneer in the wireless industry, has expanded in tandem with the astonishing growth of the wireless industry. The company has led the industry with innovative voice and data services, and a commitment to providing the same advanced wireless services in rural areas that are available in metropolitan areas.

It all began in the late 1940s, when the family of Wade H. Creekmore, Sr., entered the telephone business with a purchase of a small telephone company in Calhoun County, Mississippi.

According to one of Cellular South's shareholders, some people living in those areas already had telephones but most did not. The ones that did not were most interesting when their phone was installed for the first time.

"We would explain to them how to use the telephone, and some of them would dial the number and then pick up the receiver, thinking that that was the way to do it. But when they first got those telephones and they were able to call their family members across the country from their own homes, it was very meaningful to them."

Now, Telapex, Inc., the parent company of Cellular South, has several subsidiaries, including Cellular South, Franklin Telephone Company, Delta Telephone Company, Branch Cable, and Telapak Networks.

"Their goal over the years has been to provide to those rural areas that they serve the same quality telephone service that's available in the urban areas of our nation."

For many years, telephone service was limited by fixed lines and cables. In those early days, it would have been hard to envision that from Telapex's humble beginnings, one of their future companies, Cellular South, would grow to be one of the largest privately-held wireless company in the nation, using the latest in communications technology.

In the early 1960s, the Creekmore's business consisted primarily of rural telephone exchanges in several Mississippi counties, a fact that would ultimately prove crucial in establishing a business presence that would give the company access to lotteries for cellular licenses.

Less than five years after the FCC began awarding licenses in the wireless industry, Cellular South had acquired several licenses and was positioned to implement the new wireless technology.

The company introduced wireless service in its first market, the Mississippi Gulf Coast, on February 4, 1988, with Ole Miss football legend Archie Manning making the inaugural call to then-U.S. Representative, Trent Lott, in Washington.

[transcript of first Cellular South call]

"Congressman Lott's office."

"Yes, this is Archie Manning calling for Congressman Lott, please."

"Hey, Archie."

"Trent, how you doin'?"

"All right. Good to talk to you."

"Well, I'm glad to talk to you. I think you..."

"Sorry I didn't see you at homecoming last year."

"No, I didn't...I was involved with the Saints last year, and didn't make it to homecoming."

And with that call, Cellular South was launched.

"We didn't even come close to realizing the potential in the early stages until after we turned on the first system on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. For all we knew, we might get four or five hundred customers, and that would be the end of it; the end of the growth. But it soon became apparent that cellular telephone service was going to be a very popular thing."

The company shareholders including, Hu Meena, now company president, steered Cellular South through the unprecedented wireless growth of the late ‘90s, operating under the original vision of providing the best service in the region through an intense focus on customer satisfaction and service to their communities.

With these values firmly in place, Cellular South has experienced steady growth year after year since 1988. Cellular South currently operates approximately 75 retail outlets in Mississippi, Southwest Tennessee, Coastal Alabama, and the Florida Panhandle to Destin. Four call centers are based in Mississippi, an online store and answer center at cellularsouth.com, and a centralized service and repair center.

Company Milestones

Founded in 1988 on the Mississippi Gulf Coast
One of the largest privately held wireless providers in the nation
Launched digital network in 1999
Expanded footprint to Coastal Alabama and the Florida Panhandle to Destin in 2000
Again expanded footprint to Southwest Tennessee, including Memphis, in 2001
Upgraded entire network to CDMA 1x in 2001
For many, Cellular South was the first and only means of communication during and immediately following Hurricane Katrina
Launched EvDO high-speed wireless broadband to parts of its region in 2006
Opened new Technical Operations Center in downtown Jackson in 2007
Constructed new corporate headquarters to Ridgeland, MS in 2007
First wireless carrier to launched Obopay data service and WirelessWallet consumer m-commerce trial in 2007.
Celebrating 20th Anniversary in February 2008

Mission Statement/Company Vision

Cellular South's Core Values

Our Vision
To be the best service provider in our region.

Our Mission
To provide high quality personal wireless communication services so that we:
Become the market share leader within our region
Consistently rank among top three in customer retention in the industry
Continue to meet key financial objectives

Our Position
For those who depend on their wireless service in every way, Cellular South is passionately committed to doing things the right way.

Our Culture

We serve customers with respect. We respect customers with service.
We value each position in our company by properly investing in the PERSON who fills each position.
We always act with complete integrity, even if it costs us business.
We are active in and supportive of the communities we serve.
We consistently look for ways to bring improved quality to our customers.
We seek to deliver greater value to customers and stakeholders over the long term.
We have a sense of urgency to get the job done.
We plan. We execute. We transform.

Company Philosophy

Through unwavering passion and conviction for doing things the right way for our customers, community and fellow Cellular South employees, we've built a company we can be proud of and our customers can depend on every day. Our Customers have come to expect Cellular South to deliver quality, innovative, reliable and affordable wireless products and services – and every Cellular South team member is committed to deliver on that promise every day.
Key facts about how Cellular South customers use their wireless service:

A recent measurement showed that 25% of Cellular South users have gone completely wireless, meaning they have replaced their landline phone with their wireless phone as their primary communications link.
Cellular South customers talk 67% more than customers of other carriers.
They text six times as much than customers of other carriers
Cellular South has one of the lowest customer turnover rates in the industry.

Company Facts

Who We Are

Cellular South, one of the nation's largest privately held wireless companies, is headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi and employs approximately 950 people living in the Southeastern United States.

Cellular South provides premier wireless devices and services to customers through 75 retail locations, our B2B corporate sales team, on-line at cellularsouth.com and our Telesales group at 1-877-CSOUTH1.

Our Network

Cellular South has invested more than $500 million in its wireless network since 1999, with 231 new cell sites added in 2006 and more being built in 2007. The company's CDMA third generation digital wireless network provides improved call quality and coverage inside office buildings and homes, network clarity, and capacity to accommodate voice and data traffic.

Our dependable wireless network survived Hurricane Katrina and for many was the first and only means of communication available during and after the storm.

Our commitment to a reliable and advanced network includes the construction of a permanent $2.5 million microwave ring in South Mississippi for redundancy in the event that landline systems are not operable – further strengthening our network for unmatched reliability. We have also invested approximately $2 million to upgrade back-up generators and constructed a new switch in Hattiesburg, MS to for extra capacity in order to provide the best service possible in emergency situations.

To further ensure the company's ongoing reliability, Cellular South has constructed a new state-of-the-art facility in downtown Jackson, MS. This facility serves as the company's Technical Operations Center and boasts some of the most advanced wireless communications equipment available in a highly secure environment. The downtown Jackson, MS location was strategically placed and provides Cellular South with unmatched power for its wireless network as well as being equipped with multiple feeds of fiber optic connectivity. While approximately $8 million was spent constructing the building itself, Cellular South will invest $50 million in additional high-tech equipment at the location by the end of 2007.

Products and Services

Cellular South offers best-in-class flat rate, unlimited calling plans, giving our customers more freedom and flexibility with their phone. Cellular South's Nationwide Plus Plan made it possible for our customers to use more than 1,446 minutes per month on their wireless phones in Q3 2006, while the industry average is only 934 minutes.

Cellular South's Unlimited Nationwide Text Messaging plan lets customers stay in touch through text and e-mail messages. The national average of the number of text messages sent/received per month in 2006 was 50 messages. Cellular South customers sent more than 850 messages per month (SMS customers). At the end of 2005, Cellular South's text messaging usage was six times the national average.

Cellular South has deployed Evolution Data Optimized (Ev-DO) wireless high-speed Internet network in Starkville and Mississippi Gulf Coast – providing next generation wireless service with unmatched speed, access and reliability.

Cellular South is the m-commerce leader and recently concluded a successful consumer trial of WirelessWallet which the company has slated to roll out to customers in early 2008.

Commitment to Service and the Communities We Serve

We've always been proud to call Mississippi our home even as our customer base has expanded beyond our local roots. Throughout our expansion, we've taken our role as a business leader very seriously. We're focused on improving the quality of life in the communities where we do business and, in particular, improving education opportunities and wireless service to rural areas that are often ignored by the national carriers.

Since 1997, Cellular South has donated more than $1.5 million to area universities for scholarships, endowments and building funds.

In 2007, Cellular South established the GamePlan program, in partnership with the Mississippi High School Activities Association and the Mississippi State Department of education, aimed at increasing the success rate for college admission for Mississippi high school student-athletes.

The company also supports numerous organizations through sponsorships, volunteerism and donations.

In the past decade, Cellular South has received the following awards:

The 1999 Blue Chip Enterprise Award by Mass Mutual and the United States Chamber of Commerce
The 2000 Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association President's Safety Award
The Memphis Regional Chamber Quality Cup Team Award (2003)
2003 Wireless Week Excellence Award
2005 Wireless Week Excellence Award
2005 Better Business Bureau's Integrity Award
2006 Newcomen Award for technical innovation and ardent community support
2006 and 2007 awarded concurrent resolutions from the Mississippi Legislature commending the executives and employees of Cellular South for the company's extraordinary efforts in Hurricane Katrina's wake, as well as building an outstanding success story in the highly competitive telecommunications and wireless industry, while simultaneously embracing and expanding a spirit of integrity, devoted customer service and unwavering civic mindedness.
Mississippi Governor's Cup