FASTNET Connects Pennsylvania H.S. Students with Governor Rendell in Online School Assembly to Discuss Education Funding.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

BETHLEHEM, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 6, 2003

FASTNET(R) Corporation (NASDAQ:FSST), a leading regional provider of high-performance, dedicated and reliable broadband services, announced today that the company will be connecting thousands of high school students across Pennsylvania with Governor Edward G. Rendell and other Commonwealth leaders in an online conference to discuss the state of public education funding.

The event, which is being held today at the Norristown Area High School, is sponsored and organized entirely by student members of the school's Leadership Class and S.T.A.N.D (Students Taking Action for Neglected Districts), a student-led education funding information group.

Nearly 20 schools across Pennsylvania will be participating in the assembly, both in-person and online and will have the opportunity to question not only Governor Rendell, but representatives from PSEA, the PA Department of Education, as well as members of the state legislature on the equality of public school funding. For those students unable to attend the event in person, FASTNET has volunteered its Internet service expertise to connect those schools via online streaming audio and video technologies.

"FASTNET has always supported and worked with educational institutions to deliver the best online communication tools for their students and faculty," says Sonny Hunt, FASTNET founder and vice president. "Providing Web streaming capabilities for the Norristown Area High School conference is a natural for us and we are honored to help connect students from all across Pennsylvania for this event. We look forward to continuingly delivering these types of services to schools and universities all across the East Coast."

By using FASTNET capabilities, not only will off-site students be able to see and hear the conference as it unfolds, but will also have the opportunity to email questions to each speaker during the event and have them answered in real-time.

Patrice Turenne, a Norristown Area H.S. senior and one of the event organizers stresses the importance of the conference. "The state of equitable funding for public schools across Pennsylvania is important to everyone. The fact that many schools are unable to attend the conference due to lack of funds is a clear example of the importance of this issue," she said. "We appreciate companies like FASTNET who are lending their services to the community and demonstrating how solutions can come from the private sector."

About FASTNET Corporation

FASTNET (NASDAQ: FSST) provides high-performance, dedicated and reliable broadband services to businesses that need to drive productivity, profitability and customer service via the Internet. Through private, redundant peering arrangements with the national IP backbone carriers, FASTNET delivers customer data through the fastest, least congested route to enhance reliability, improve performance, and eliminate downtime. Founded in 1994, FASTNET provides a complete suite of solutions for dedicated and broadband access, Internet security and data backup as well as wireless Internet connectivity, VPN design and implementation, managed hosting, Web site and e-commerce development and co-location.

Based in Bethlehem, PA, FASTNET serves the greater Mid-Atlantic region from Northern Virginia to New England.

The Company's common shares are listed on the NASDAQ under the symbol "FSST." For more information on FASTNET, visit the Company's Web site at www.fast.net or call 1-888-321-FAST.

All media inquiries should contact Tim Cifelli at [phone] or [e-mail]. Investor inquiries should be directed to Jim Maloney at [phone] or [e-mail].

Forward Looking Statements

This news release contains comments or information that constitutes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which involves significant risks and uncertainties. Careful review must be given to the risk factors set forth in FASTNET's periodic reports as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The information contained herein is current only as of the date of this release and FASTNET undertakes no obligation to update the information in this press release in the future.