MCI WorldCom Announces Major Expansion In Dial-Up Internet Access For Businesses World-Wide

UUNET Adds 50,000 Additional European Modem Ports, and Introduces New 'UUdial' Global Services Including the Flagship Service Designed for Internet Service Providers - 'UUdial VIP' FAIRFAX,Va., March 15, 1999 --- UUNET, the Internet services division of MCI WorldCom and a global leader in Internet communications solutions, today announced major enhancements to its dial-up Internet infrastructure and dial-up Internet services for businesses in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. The expansion will initially offer Internet service providers, and later multinational companies, one set of dial services, under the UUdial service name, to meet their global needs, streamlining the functionality and administration of global Internet services. "Historically, ISPs have often been limited to a local business model, and global companies have purchased Internet services based on the needs and preferences of offices in individual countries and regions," said Mark Spagnolo, president and CEO of UUNET. "But more and more, we are seeing the need for a truly global solution, with one provider, one consistent set of services, and one equal level of service. Our new global UUdial services will meet this need." Today's announcement consists of two main elements:

• Infrastructure: The announcement of a major expansion of UUNET's global dial-up Internet access infrastructure, including a new European Dial Access Network (EuroDAN).
• Services: The roll-out of a new global portfolio of dial-up Internet services for business - the 'UUdial' service family. The first flagship service within this group, UUdial VIP (Virtual Internet Provider), launched today, meets the global dial access requirements of a specific type of business - Internet Service Providers and Online Service Providers.

New Global Infrastructure
In a major step to expand the company's global dial-up network, UUNET and MCI WorldCom have completed the first stage of development of the company's European Dial Access Network (EuroDAN), which provides consistent high quality dial-up Internet infrastructure within Europe. To date, 50,000 additional new European modem ports have been installed in 11 European countries (Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom), which is planned to increase to 25 European countries during the next six months. The EuroDAN benefits from network synergies between UUNET and its parent company MCI WorldCom whose European fibre network, Ulysses, underpins the project. The project will serve UUNET dial-up customers accessing the Internet in Europe, including major customers such as AOL Europe. The EuroDAN is just one element of UUNET's strategy to create a wide-reaching facilities-based global dial-up network throughout The Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific. UUNET now has over a million dial access ports (modems) world-wide. New Global Services
In conjunction with this global network expansion, UUNET will also introduce a new set of global dial-up Internet services for businesses. The new UUdial offerings will provide globally consistent services across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific, enabling ISPs and IT managers to select a single multi-national dial supplier, resulting in economies of scale, simpler end-user support and easier international access. The first UUdial service, UUdial VIP, launched today, enables existing Internet Service Providers, or companies wishing to add dial-up Internet access to their service portfolio, to effectively outsource the building and management of global dial access infrastructure to one supplier, UUNET. UUdial VIP provides the ISP and its end-users with a global service, offering local access to UUNET's global dial-up access and Internet -backbone networks. The ISP, in turn, maintains control of the customer relationship, content, branding and other aspects of the service. "Internet service provision is a great business opportunity, both for 'conventional' ISPs and increasingly also for well known brands that wish to provide their customers with Internet access," commented Dennis Brouwer, vice president, product marketing, global dial services at UUNET. "However, building and maintaining a state-of-the-art global dial-up network is a task requiring specialized skills and investment. UUNET has the skills and investment required - and UUdial VIP enables companies to build their own Internet business while leveraging UUNET's expertise." This model is a well established part of UUNET's business, with customers including AOL/CompuServe, EarthLink and MSN Internet Access. This new service enhances existing UUNET services by providing ISPs with access to increased global coverage in addition to centralized billing and support services. Availability
UUdial VIP is available immediately to customers in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. For more information see UUNET's global Web site, http://www.uu.net or contact Multi-national Sales in a local UUNET office. Further UUdial services, catering to the needs of medium and large businesses world-wide will be announced in the future.