BELL ATLANTIC CHAIRMAN RAY SMITH PREDICTS SHIFT TO NETWORKED SOCIETY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 2, 1996

BELL ATLANTIC CHAIRMAN RAY SMITH PREDICTS SHIFT TO
NETWORKED SOCIETY

Smith Keynote Speaker at
Federal Office Systems Expo

WASHINGTON, D.C. --Spurred on by a technological
revolution, the
communications and computer industries will create a truly networked
society in the not-so-distant future that will change the way
institutions operate, according to Raymond W. Smith, Bell Atlantic
chairman and chief executive officer.

Smith shared his vision of this revolutionary shift in a keynote
address today to more than 300 government executives, contractors and
network integrators at the 1996 Federal Office Systems Expo (FOSE) at
the Washington Convention Center.

"The demand for bandwidth has replaced the demand for processing
power
as the driving force behind the communications and computer industries
putting networked solutions at the center of information-systems
strategies for the next 20 years" said Smith. "Nothing better
demonstrates this network-centric vision than the growth of Internet --
the 'mother of all networks' -- born right here at the Department of
Defense."

Smith said a networked world will transform enterprises, both public
and private, in the next decade, from the way we interact among
ourselves to the way companies and government agencies interface with
their customers. "Networks that can deliver high-capacity
transmission, instant connections and point-to-point communications -
quickly and cheaply - will be the critical element of any information
infrastructure, public or private, in the years ahead," he said.

Networks will be critical to the on-going task of restructuring the
federal government, according to Smith, who said information
technology is already changing the operations of the federal
government as "a wired America demands to file income tax returns
and
Social Security claim forms, renew passports, get disability checks -
basically, transact all their business with government agencies - in
electronic form."

Smith said Bell Atlantic will play a vital role in a networked economy
by providing the federal government with the basic infrastructure to
make all networks function seamlessly, by continuing to support the
federal government's use of ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network)
service for connectivity to the desktop and by working with government
to provide innovative ways to deliver government services to the
American public.

Bell Atlantic Federal Systems' president, Barbara Connor, who also
spoke to government executives, said"Telecommunications reform will
bring significant changes to the federal information technology market
that will benefit the government. Under the new ground rules, Bell
Atlantic Federal Systems will continue to aggressively compete for
federal information technology business. Our goal is to anticipate
and respond to the government's changing needs for advanced
information technology."

Bell Atlantic Corporation (NYSE: BEL) is at the forefront of the new
communications, entertainment and information industry. In the
mid-Atlantic region, the company is the premier provider of local
telecommunications and advanced services. Globally, it is one of the
largest investors in the high-growth wireless communication
marketplace. Bell Atlantic also owns a substantial interest in
Telecom Corporation of New Zealand and is actively developing
high-growth national and international business opportunities in all
phases of the industry.

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for more information, contact:

Bell Atlantic Federal System, Mary Hecht-Kissell , 202-392-4720
mary.a.hecht-kissell@bell-atl.com

Bell Atlantic, Ells Edwards, 302-576-5340
ellsworth.edwards@bell-atl.com

STG Marketing Communications, Sandy Levine, 703-277-3100