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Integra Telecom Grew More Than 50% in 2002

Increased market share and fiscal responsibility deliver strong results

BEAVERTON, OR - February 20, 2003 - "Survival of the fittest" could be considered an appropriate theme for telecom in 2002, however Integra Telecom finished another year of strong growth in access line equivalents (ALEs) and revenues. Integra ended 2002 with more than 51 percent growth in revenues and 40 percent growth in ALEs over 2001, ending the year with 168,000 ALEs.

"We're delighted with our performance last year considering the sluggishness of the overall economy," said Dudley Slater, chief executive officer of Integra Telecom. "We continue to be gratified by the demand we see in the market for our value proposition which allows us to increase our market share in the five states where we have local operations. Our penetration of the addressable market, small and medium sized businesses on our network, rose substantially in 2002. We recorded market share growth of anywhere from 5 percent in our mature markets to over 100 percent in our newer markets.

"This strong customer response and historical growth trend has Integra looking forward to serving more valued customers, capturing additional market share and strengthening our position in the market. We expect exciting results in 2003 as this growth, together with our continued, careful execution of our plan position Integra to become free cash flow positive in the first half of the year."

As a result of conscientious growth, aggressive sales and proactive customer service by customer service representatives who are located in the markets they serve, Integra has grown revenues and market share rapidly while maintaining positive earnings before income tax depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) since December 2001. Also, contrary to the trend of telecom bankruptcies and debt restructurings that occurred in 2002, Integra raised $22 million from its shareholder and bank groups in July 2002 - a vote of confidence in Integra's business model, and an anomaly during a year when investors were cautious about the telecom industry.

Integra's 2002 results continue to validate its business model and confirm that small and mid-sized businesses seek an alternative to the incumbent, monopoly telecommunications providers.

Key technology investments

Always seeking to improve its level of customer service, Integra brought new products and services to the market last year. Conference Now ™, an audio-conferencing product allowing up to 24 participants to join in a single call, was launched during the fourth quarter. Integra also introduced a premium, managed-services product line hosted at its new Internet data center located in Portland's Brewery Blocks.

Recognition

Integra was named the 142nd fastest growing private company in America by Inc. magazine. The company was also named the 16th fastest growing private company in the Portland area by the Portland Business Journal.

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