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BEDMINSTER, N.J. -- AT&T today announced it was awarded a $2 million, three-year global networking contract from The Associated Press (AP), the world's largest newsgathering organization. AT&T will provide an integrated data networking infrastructure in the form of a single, seamless global IP virtual private network (VPN) that will connect the AP's 242 bureaus worldwide, which serve 15,000 news outlets in 121 countries. The contract expands the two companies' existing relationship, under which AT&T provides AP's domestic Wide Area Network (WAN) infrastructure, in addition to long distance and local voice services. "Technology in the field of news delivery is evolving with extraordinary speed, requiring AP to maintain the best, most cost effective strategy for managing our network," said Jeffrey Hastie, Deputy Director, Services and Technology for Associated Press. "Expanding our relationship with AT&T allows us to contract with a single, reliable global provider to achieve the reach, reliability, and efficiencies we require." Hastie added that AP's legacy in news gathering makes it critical for the AP to work with an industry leader that has the resources, financial stability and experience to continuously expand and enhance its global network. Under terms of the contract, AT&T will provide seamless global networking capabilities, regional help desks in each time zone offering in-language services and a single bill in a single currency. Contract components include: -- Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) data service for AP's key network hubs in Europe and the U.S. to support ATM connectivity in the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific. The ATM capability provides a dedicated connection switching technology that organizes digital data into 53-byte cell units and transmits them over the AT&T Network using digital signal technology. -- AT&T's Global Managed Internet Service covers AP's distributed locations, using AT&T's global IP network and dedicated connections to AT&T's points of presence throughout the world. "Millions of people around the world rely on Associated Press to bring them the news, and this global solution allows AP to operate its entire global network on a single, integrated platform -- gaining efficiencies, maintaining the highest quality and network reliability, while reducing costs," said Andrea Messineo, Sales Vice President -- AT&T Media & Entertainment group.