In 1876 Alexander Graham Bell invented an "electrical speech machine," the breakthrough behind the modern telephone. Two short years later, he established the first telephone exchange in New Haven, CT. And by 1884 the first "long distance" connections between Boston and New York City. Global communications has never been the same.

125 years of technological innovation later, people and businesses are increasingly connected. Voice, data, wireless, the Internet, voice over IP — all are rapidly converging to reshape the future of communications, information and commerce. In the midst of sweeping change, think about how the telephone has matured within our lifetime.

The design has evolved beyond basic black with rotary dial. Virtually anyone, anywhere in the world has access to one while millions more tote wireless phones. Human switch operators have been replaced by intelligent network routers. Copper lines have given way to fiber optics. Telecom costs are spiraling downward while reliability remains incredibly high.

Yet surprisingly, one important factor remains fundamentally unchanged: the "experience" of using the phone. Callers are still saddled with punching 10-digit numbers on keypads for connections, talking to live operators for frequently requested information, or navigating obtuse and confusing touch-tone menus just to hear an account balance or change an address.

Now imagine a world where callers pick up any phone and are immediately greeted with easy-to-understand voice prompts. They simply say what they want to do and an intelligent network connects them to the person, business, information or service they need. That's our vision — Dial Tone 2.0 — and we are working hard every day to make it a reality.