Progress Telecom-EPIK Agreement Closes; Progress Telecom, LLC to Launch New Year With Expanded Presence, Products.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 22, 2003

Progress Telecom Corporation, a wholesale broadband services provider, and EPIK Communications, of Orlando, announced today the closing of the agreement to combine operations made public last month. The closing signals the beginning of operations of a new company -- Progress Telecom, LLC. The company will be headquartered in the Tampa Bay area. Progress Energy (NYSE:PGN) and Odyssey Telecorp, joint owners, bring to the Progress Telecom, LLC a competitive nature, strong financial backing, stability, and telecom savvy.

Progress Telecom, LLC will be led by Ron Mudry, president and CEO. "The complementary strengths of Progress Telecom and EPIK provide a truly unique capacity for delivering the superior value that our customers, employees and stakeholders expect," said Mudry. "The best practices from both companies will be combined to ensure customers continue to receive outstanding customer care, industry-leading provisioning intervals and standard-setting network reliability."

The combined company will continue to be a leading provider of broadband services, bringing increased flexibility to its customers. Progress Telecom, LLC will offer greater geographic reach as well as an expanded product set for both long haul and metro customers. The network, extending from Miami to New York, with dense Tier II and Tier III metro reach, makes more options available to customers. Expanded presence in cable landing stations benefits customers seeking to distribute international traffic. The product portfolio is broader with a greater range of services including Private Line Transport, Optical Wavelength, Ethernet, IP transit and Internet access.

Mudry also announced the company's executive team: Paul Aiello, vice president of sales and marketing; Greg Tennant, vice president of customer service delivery; Elizabeth Walker, vice president of network operations, provisioning and field services; Greg Hadlock, director of planning, engineering and technology; and Patricia Morrison, director of finance.

About Progress Telecom, LLC

Progress Telecom, LLC combines the assets of Progress Telecom and EPIK Communications. The new company is one of the largest leading regional providers of broadband services in the eastern United States. The combined fiber network offers fast local loop, metro ring access with dense wave division multiplexing (DWDM) technology and a 10 gigabit, OC-192 IP backbone. Progress Telecom, LLC's robust long-haul and metro fiber transport from New York to Miami allows customers to gain access to international gateways and first, second, and third-tier markets. The company's industry-leading network provides strategic POP locations in the eastern United States, including major international cable landing presence in south Florida. Broadband services offered include private line, wavelength, Ethernet, and Internet protocol (IP), as well as other customized services and solutions. Progress Telecom, LLC is jointly owned by Progress Energy (NYSE:PGN), a Fortune 250 diversified energy company headquartered in Raleigh, NC, and Odyssey Telecorp, a telecommunications investment firm based in Palo Alto, CA. For more information about Progress Telecom, LLC, visit the company's website at http://www.progresstelecom.com