Bell Atlantic's Infospeed^sm DSL Service Now Available in Parts of 16 Rhode Island Communities

Bell Atlantic's Infospeed^sm DSL Service Now Available in Parts of 16 Rhode Island Communities

April 10, 2000

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Many Rhode Island residents and businesses have a new choice for high-speed Internet access - Bell Atlantic's Infospeed DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) service, a direct connection to the Internet available today in parts of 16 communities in the state.

With Infospeed DSL, you have a dedicated line to the Internet. Once you are connected, you can stay on as long as you want -- there's no re-dialing and no busy signals. With one click of the mouse, you're there.

"Our Infospeed DSL package includes fast, unlimited access to the Internet; Bell Atlantic's own Internet service, and the ability to use the same phone line to talk or fax while you're online," said Amy McIntosh, president and CEO, Bell Atlantic Network Data. "And Infospeed provides your own dedicated connection."

"Bell Atlantic continues to bring customer-pleasing new technologies to our customers," said Donna Cupelo, president and CEO of Bell Atlantic - Rhode Island. "People will be delighted with this new service."

Specifically, DSL is being offered in many parts of the following localities in the state: Ashton, Centerdale, Cranston, East Providence, East Greenwich, Narragansett, Newport, North Kingstown, Pawtucket, Portsmouth, Providence, Tiverton, Warren, Warwick, West Warwick and Woonsocket.

Consumers can determine whether Infospeed DSL is available to them and order the service on the Bell Atlantic Web site at www.bellatlantic.com/infospeed or by calling 1-877-525-2375. Consumers who order online can get Infospeed DSL free for the first 30 days. Additional information about Infospeed DSL packages for small businesses is available at www.bellatlantic.com/smallbiz

Infospeed DSL is Bell Atlantic's brand name for DSL, or Digital Subscriber Line technology, which provides Internet access at connection speeds up to 7.1 Mbps (megabits per second) or up to 126 times faster than a traditional 56 Kbps (kilobits per second) modem, depending on the Infospeed package selected.

The connection speed is the rate at which customers connect to the DSL network and is faster than the actual speed of data transfer, also known as the throughput rate. The throughput rate varies based on a number of factors including Internet congestion, proximity to the phone company central office, modem configuration and other factors not controlled by the company.

By taking advantage of the capacity of existing telephone lines, DSL technology allows consumers to use a single phone line to send a fax or make phone calls while simultaneously surfing the Web for news, weather or the latest stock quotes.

Infospeed Packages Offer Tremendous Value

At $49.95 a month, Bell Atlantic's entry-level Personal Infospeed package for consumers features speeds up to 640 Kbps with unlimited use. Bell Atlantic Infospeed DSL Personal Plus, the company's entry-level package for businesses, is priced at $64.95, with speeds up to 640 Kbps for unlimited use.

Consumers and business customers who want even faster connections have two other options:

• Bell Atlantic Professional Infospeed for consumers at $99.95 a month, or Bell Atlantic Infospeed DSL Professional Plus for businesses at $114.95, features speeds up to 1.6 Mbps.

• Bell Atlantic Power Infospeed for consumers at $189.95, or Bell Atlantic Infospeed DSL Power Plus at $204.95 a month, offers speeds up to 7.1 Mbps.

All Bell Atlantic Infospeed DSL packages for consumers include BellAtlantic.net^sm Internet access and a link to a special version of the Snap portal service designed for Bell Atlantic's high-speed users.

In addition, Bell Atlantic Infospeed DSL Plus packages offer business customers up to six mailboxes, sized to meet business needs at 20 megabytes each, and five megabytes of Web page
space.

Getting started costs customers only $99 - the price of the DSL modem.

Quick Start Installation Kit

After a customer places an order, Bell Atlantic will equip their line with DSL. At the same time, the company will ship them a DSL modem and a Quick Start Guide with instructions on how to complete the installation themselves. Customers will receive everything they need to connect to the Internet using Bell Atlantic's Infospeed DSL service.

The kit includes:

• DSL modem
• six desk and two wall micro-filters
• two-line adapter
• cable for the DSL modem
• Bell Atlantic.net^sm software
• Infospeed DSL user guide
• Quick Start Installation instructions

The Quick Start installation is available to customers who sign up for Personal or Professional Infospeed; generally, no technician visit is required. A visit from a Bell Atlantic technician is required under certain circumstances for Personal Infospeed (when a customer has a home alarm monitoring service, for example), when consumers subscribe to Power Infospeed and for all businesses that subscribe to Infospeed DSL.

After installation is completed, technical support is available to all Infospeed DSL customers, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Finally, the service comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee for all charges if a customer decides not to continue service.

In addition to parts of Rhode Island, Infospeed DSL is currently offered in parts of the New York City; Philadelphia; Pittsburgh; Boston; Baltimore; Washington, D.C.; Charleston and Huntington, W.Va.; Richmond and Hampton Roads, Va. metropolitan areas, and in parts of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Massachusetts.

Bell Atlantic is at the forefront of the new communications and information industry. With nearly 44 million telephone access lines and 12 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.