Bell Atlantic Lowers Residential ISDN Rates in VA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 8, 1996

ACCESS TO CYBERSPACE BECOMES VERY AFFORDABLE FOR VIRGINIA
CONSUMERS

New Lower Rates and Installation Charges for Residential ISDN
Offer Super Savings for Bell Atlantic-Virginia
Customers

ARLINGTON, VA - High-speed access to cyberspace from
home is now very
affordable and easy to get for Virginia consumers. Bell Atlantic has
just reduced prices for its residential ISDN (Integrated Services
Digital Network) service by 15 to 86 percent below previous rates.

Bell Atlantic filed the
new pricing plan in April with the state's
public utility commission and the lower rates went into effect
July 3.

"Our new pricing packages make high-speed access very affordable for
consumers, whether they want to surf the 'Net, go on-line or access
their corporate computer network," said Curt Koeppen, Bell Atlantic
vice president - ISDN. "With the rapidly growing consumer demand
for more bandwidth, we believe our new ISDN pricing will help create
a true mass market for ISDN."

New pricing plans for monthly residential ISDN service in Virginia
include five packages ranging from 20 to 500 hours of use for voice,
data or video and a package for unlimited use. The 20-hour package
costs $31, a 40 percent reduction over Bell Atlantic's previous
peak rates. The 500-hour package is $120, an 81 percent reduction
over the company's previous peak rates.

For example, consumers who buy the 20-hour package can get 10 hours if
they use both "B" channels or 20 hours when they use one
"B" channel
for voice or data transmission. ISDN provides two B channels that can
each transmit data at 64 kilobits per second (Kbps).

For those who need to have an ISDN data connection 24 hours a day,
seven days a week, Bell Atlantic offers an unlimited ISDN usage
package for $249 monthly.

Consumers who plan to use ISDN for only a few hours a month can buy
measured service for $23.50 monthly plus the standard usage fee of
2 cents per minute per channel during peak hours or 1 cent per minute
per channel during off-peak hours. (See attached
chart for further
details.) Peak time is 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Off-peak times are evenings and weekends.

With the new pricing plan, the installation charge is $125, a 25
percent reduction off previous installation charges for most
customers.

The new pricing plans and the monthly rates are as follows:

Measured - $23.50 plus usage charge
20 hours - $31
60 hours - $45
140 hours - $60
300 hours - $90
500 hours - $120
Unlimited - $249

Customers who use more time than the package they select will pay the
standard usage fee for the additional time -- 2 cents per minute per
channel weekdays (peak time) and 1 cent per minute per channel at
other times (off-peak).

Previously, Bell Atlantic's residential customers paid an average of
$28 monthly for ISDN service, plus usage charges of 2 cents per minute
per channel during peak hours and 1 cent per minute per channel
off-peak hours.

ISDN provides consumers who telecommute, surf the Internet or use
on-line services with a quicker way to transmit and download data,
graphics and images. With additional software and hardware for their
PCs, consumers who telecommute can easily and quickly collaborate on
projects with co-workers in other locations.

Later this summer, Bell Atlantic is planning to package its own
Internet service with ISDN, providing consumers with an attractively
priced way to get fast access to the Internet.

ISDN is an all-digital network technology that combines voice, data
and video signals on a single telephone line, and transmits them at
speeds up to 128 Kbps - or as high as 500 Kbps with common compression
techniques available in some of the ISDN-capable equipment. When
compared with 14.4 Kbps analog modems, the increase in speed can be
up to nine-fold.

In addition to the two B channels, ISDN has a D channel that carries
signaling for the B channels. Consumers may use one or both B
channels. For example, data may be sent at 128 Kbps when both B
channels are used. Or data can be transmitted at 64 Kbps using one B
channel, leaving the other B channel available for a phone call or
sending a fax.

Bell Atlantic offers consumers one-stop shopping for ISDN - from the
initial service order through installation. Consumers who order
ISDN service will need ISDN-capable equipment, called terminal
adapters or ISDN modems, that allow their computers to transmit and
receive data at higher speeds. Bell Atlantic offers several brands
of terminal adapters with prices beginning at $275. Bell Atlantic's
prices are significantly lower than the manufacturers' list prices
which begin at $399. Bell Atlantic also will install for an additional
fixed price the necessary inside wiring and ISDN terminal adapter.

To order or receive information about Bell Atlantic's residential ISDN
service, customers can call the Bell Atlantic InfoSpeed sales,
provisioning and service center at 1-800-204-7332 Monday through
Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Customers also can send an e-mail
message to isdncin@bell-atl.com. Information also
is available on
Bell Atlantic's residential ISDN home page at
http://www.bell-atl.com/isdn/consumer.

Bell Atlantic has installed almost 165,000 ISDN lines for business,
government and residential customers throughout its mid-Atlantic
service territory. The company is the largest supplier of local ISDN
access lines in the nation.

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.

####

Media contact:

Joan Rasmussen, 703-974-8815
joan.m.rasmussen@bell-atl.com