MCI Hits Local Service Landmarks

The Neighborhood Built by MCISM Reaches 1 Million Customer Mark; Company Now Provides Local Service to More than 2 Million Customers; Company on Track to Achieve Nearly 3 Million Combined Local, Long-Distance Customers by Year's End

ARLINGTON, Va.- Sept. 18, 2002 - MCI (MCWEQ) today announced it has achieved a key landmark in its efforts to create a vibrant, competitive consumer communications market. As of today, more than 1 million consumers across the country use The Neighborhood built by MCISM for their combined local and long distance phone service, giving the company more than 2 million combined local and long-distance customers and putting it on track to hit the 3 million customer mark by year's end.

With a customer base of 1 million, The Neighborhood built by MCISM has, in less than six months, decisively validated America's desire for competitive local choice as well as the value of the "Unbundled Network Element Platform" (UNE-P) as prescribed in The Telecommunications Act of 1996 for the delivery of local phone service.

"Since its launch in April, The Neighborhood built by MCISM has revolutionized the consumer communications industry and become the most successful local service product in the history of consumer local competition,"said Wayne Huyard, president of MCI Mass Markets. "Our success proves that consumers overwhelmingly want "any distance" phone service. However, their ability to choose that service could disappear if regulators do not advance and defend UNE-P as a local market entry method and protect it from RBOC assault."

The phone service customers want, and... the way congress intended it to be

Despite the success of The Neighborhood, which has greatly surpassed expectations, local phone markets remain overwhelmingly dominated by the RBOC monopolies. Unfortunately, MCI cannot offer The Neighborhood to every home in every state. Rather, it is limited to offering The Neighborhood to those communities and states where regulators have established fair pricing based on Regional Bell Operating Company (RBOC) costs.

"The embryonic competition that does exist will not flourish if state regulators do not continue the difficult work of pushing UNE rates to cost so that MCI and other new local market entrants can offer consumers the revolutionary new services and lower rates that only competition can deliver," said Huyard.

As MCI has established a toehold in local phone markets and successfully gained market-share, the RBOCs have chosen to attack their competitors instead of meeting the challenge by introducing into the marketplace their own quality services and competing products. Both at the state and federal levels, the RBOCS are fighting to undermine UNE-P competition, urging the Federal Communications Commission and state utility commissions to restrict availability to some UNEs and keep rates high just as local competition finally is beginning to take hold.

"It is particularly appalling that the RBOCs have sought to boost UNE rates in some of the states where regulators have done the right thing and set UNE rates at cost-based levels," added Huyard. "It is clear that they would rather maintain their monopoly status at the consumer's expense than deliver real innovation, quality and choice."

MCI to regulators: tear down barriers and watch us compete

As evidenced by its announcement yesterday in Florida and recent expansion into four new states and the District of Columbia, the company said it will answer favorable regulatory actions by lowering rates for The Neighborhood and/or extending the reach of the service.

"We're very encouraged that regulators in states such as New York, Illinois, Michigan and California have ordered cost-based UNE rates that enable us to make The Neighborhood widely available at attractive prices," Huyard said. "Florida also has taken a positive step in that direction. We're hoping that other states will follow suit, tearing down the barriers to competition that keep us from offering The Neighborhood in every part of every state."

Delivering on the promise

The Neighborhood built by MCISM is the first nationwide service to free callers from the constraints of per minute rates, time of day restrictions, and unnecessary boundaries between local and long-distance service. Originally launched in 32 states less than six months ago, the brand's flagship offering, Neighborhood Complete, is now available in 36 states - including the recent additions of Maine, Arkansas, North Carolina, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia.

Neighborhood Complete provides unlimited calling within the U.S., allowing customers to talk with whomever, whenever, and for however long, they choose - for the same fixed price each month. The entire U.S. effectively becomes one local calling area and the entire country becomes one neighborhood.

Consumers who select Neighborhood Complete enjoy the convenience of a single company and a single bill for all home phone service, the most popular calling features - Caller ID, Call Waiting, Voicemail, Three-Way Calling, and Speed Dial - and the ability to take advantage of free partner reward benefits, such as frequent flyer miles or movie video rentals. Depending on the state, Neighborhood Complete is $49.99 - $59.99 per month, plus applicable taxes and surcharges.

How to join The Neighborhood

To join The Neighborhood, consumers should call 1-800-285-FREE or visit http://www.TheNeighborhood.com.

About MCI group

MCI group (MCWEQ), an operating unit of WorldCom, Inc., is a leading provider of residential voice, advanced messaging and commercial communications services. MCI group offers a robust portfolio of products, including local, international and long-distance voice services, advanced messaging, and wholesale voice, dial-up Internet and data services. For more information, go to http://www.mci.com.