Nextel Extends International Walkie-Talkie Service Into Mexico.

Nextel Communications Inc. in partnership with NII Holdings, Inc. announced the extension of International Direct Connect walkie-talkie service to Mexico, offering an affordable way for Nextel customers to communicate with other Nextel customers in one of the most populous countries in Latin America and the United States’ second largest trading partner.

The service, which initially launched on May 4th in Canada, Argentina, Brazil and Peru, provides under-a-second digital walkie-talkie connections between the United States, and these countries, and now with Mexico – wherever Nextel and NII Holdings has coverage. Customers also benefit from data services, including BlackBerry(R) and mobile e-mail, two-way messaging, and wireless Web access. They can also enjoy NextMail(TM), the first application available to utilize the power of Nextel Direct Connect(R) walkie-talkie technology to send a voice message in the form of an email to an individual or group located anywhere in the world.

“Since we introduced International Direct Connect service, our customers are finding it to be an incredibly powerful way to communicate instantly with colleagues and friends thousands of miles away,” said Tom Kelly, executive vice president and COO, Nextel. “Since the initial launch in May, millions of International Direct Connect calls have been conducted, many of which were from customers in transportation, financial services and manufacturing, who conduct business across borders. We anticipate a significant volume of cross border communication from our customers in the U.S. to business partners, colleagues and friends in Mexico.”