WARREN, N.J., Sept. 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Virgin Mobile USA, Inc. (NYSE: VM) has made an important addition to its leadership team by naming a new Chief Information and Technology Officer (CIO/CTO). Daniel A. Acton, a veteran of the IT industry, has assumed responsibility for leading the company's evolution in information technology as it expands its information operations through an outsourcing agreement with IBM and integration of Helio's IT operations.

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In this role, Acton will assume management responsibilities for the present Virgin Mobile USA IT and product development operations. He will focus on integrating key business and technology processes, to move Virgin Mobile USA ahead as a full service wireless provider. Acton will build a new portfolio management team to govern the strategy and investment in information technology.

"Our information technology capability is of course a crucial part of our ability to deliver quality wireless service and award-winning customer care. Virgin Mobile USA is always looking for ways to improve our services and products for both customers and employees," said David Messenger, chief administrative and corporate development officer, Virgin Mobile USA. "Dan plays a critical role in ensuring that IT operations and infrastructure functionality are at the optimum level, balancing innovation and costs. He has a proven track record as an effective manager paired with many years of experience in the information and technology industry. We look forward to leveraging his insights."

With the recent close of the Helio acquisition, Acton will lead the new postpaid Engineering, MIS, and financial systems operations, as well as incoming strategic technical partnership relationships. Furthermore, he will serve as the technology liaison to the telecommunications industry.

Acton brings a broad management and technical background to his new role at Virgin Mobile USA, having served in a wide variety of executive management roles in engineering, strategy, M&A, and delivery capacities with General Electric, Lockheed Martin, Unisys, Corning and IBM, where he was most recently a partner in managing large, complex programs for Global Business Services. As an entrepreneur, he also served as a chief operating executive of multiple fiber optic engineering firms, including taking a telecom equipment company public in 2000.

Throughout his career, Acton concurrently served for 25 years as an information operations officer in the Navy Reserve where he honed his knowledge in information security and assurance.

He is a graduate of the United States Naval Academy and the Johns Hopkins University, and engaged in a doctoral scholarship at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business and Moore School of Engineering.

About Virgin Mobile USA, Inc.

Virgin Mobile USA, Inc. (NYSE: VM), through its operating company Virgin Mobile USA, L.P., offers more than five million customers control, flexibility and choice through monthly Plans Without Annual Contracts, with national coverage powered by the Sprint PCS network. With its pay-as-you-go plans and the addition of Helio's postpaid offerings, Virgin Mobile USA now provides consumers with the broadest range of wireless alternatives.

Virgin Mobile USA's full slate of smart, stylish and affordable handsets are available at approximately 40,000 top retailers nationwide and online at http://www.virginmobileusa.com/, with Top-Up cards available at more than 140,000 locations. Virgin Mobile USA is known for its award-winning customer service, was recently rated the best prepaid wireless service for the second year in a row in the Annual PC Magazine Readers' Choice Survey, with 90% of its own customers reporting satisfaction with its service. Virgin Mobile USA allows customers to earn free minutes in exchange for viewing advertising content online through the innovative Sugar Mama program.

SOURCE Virgin Mobile USA, Inc.