Bell Atlantic Offers Evidence of Flourishing Local Phone Competition in Pennsylvania

Bell Atlantic Offers Evidence of Flourishing Local Phone Competition in Pennsylvania

July 1, 1998

HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Competition in Pennsylvania's local telephone
market is real and growing rapidly, a Bell Atlantic executive told a state
senate committee today.

"Competition is here and it's flourishing," said Bill Mitchell, vice president-
external affairs for Bell Atlantic - Pennsylvania, at a hearing of the
Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure Committee. "And the
telecommunications market in Pennsylvania is poised for an explosion in
competition over the next year."

The following facts show the rapid growth rate in Pennsylvania's local
phone market:

Competitive Local Exchange Carriers (CLECs) [as of 06/30/98]: 91

Interconnection agreements [as of 06/30/98]:
Agreements signed -- 76
Agreements approved by Public Utility Commission -- 32

Minutes of Use exchanged between Bell Atlantic - Pa. and CLECs:
Total for 1997 -- 1.398 billion
January-May 1998 -- 1.425 billion

Nearly 57,000 trunks link Bell Atlantic - Pa.'s and CLECs' networks;
these trunks can support up to 570,000 CLEC lines.

Unbundled loop growth:
12/31/97 -- 11,000
05/31/98 -- 18,000 [60 percent growth]

Resold lines growth:
12/31/97 -- 30,000
05/31/98 -- 66,000 [633 percent average quarterly growth rate]
{Includes 37,000 business lines; 29,000 residential lines}

Further evidence:

• 94 percent of Bell Atlantic - Pa. business lines, 87 percent of our
  residential lines are in switching offices where at least one competitor
  is present, either through collocation of their equipment in Bell
  Atlantic central offices, facilities deployed, unbundled loops, resale or
  ported numbers.

• As of March 1998, collocation is complete or in progress in 84 of 387
  switching offices in Pa., giving collocators immediate access to 68
  percent of business lines and 49 percent of residential lines.

• A study shows that 76 percent of Bell Atlantic - Pa. business
  customers and 61 percent of residential customers are served by
  switching offices where at least one facilities-based competitor is
  present.

  "We're off to a good start in developing a competitive market in
  Pennsylvania, but all competitors are not yet allowed to compete in all
  markets," said Mitchell. Bell Atlantic - Pennsylvania currently is prohibited
  from offering long distance service in its service area until it has met a
  series of requirements included in the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

  Mitchell concluded by urging the committee not to let the self-serving
  remarks of some competitors -- who claim that Bell Atlantic is hindering
  competition in local markets -- keep Pennsylvanians from realizing the full
  benefits of robust competition in all markets.

Bell Atlantic -- formed through the merger of Bell Atlantic and NYNEX --
is at the forefront of the new communications and information industry.
With more than 41 million telephone access lines and 6.7 million wireless
customers worldwide, Bell Atlantic companies are premier providers of
advanced wireline voice and data services, market leaders in wireless
services and the world's largest publishers of directory information. Bell
Atlantic companies are also among the world's largest investors in high-
growth global communications markets, with operations and investments in
23 countries.