Sprint said Tuesday it has been awarded a contract to provide New Jersey with communicative services to the deaf and hard of hearing.

Through the three-year contract, Sprint will be replacing AT&T as the provider of telecommunications relay services, the company said in a news release. The new service will be available from Feb. 1 within New Jersey by dialing 711.

Sprint will be offering CapTel technology that provides captions live for every call, which are displayed on a phone's built-in screen so that users can read the words from the caller.

Copyright 2005 by United Press International