Future Expansion Planned For Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile In Pittsburgh

Future Expansion Planned For Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile In Pittsburgh

Company's Local Employment Rose 25% in 1996; Investment in
Pittsburgh Network Tops $150 Million

January 27, 1997

PITTSBURGH, PA --
Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile enters the new year with
aggressive plans to strengthen its market leadership position in the
Pittsburgh Region by launching CDMA digital technology,
introducing
new wireless products, and
widening its already expansive network.
These plans come on the heels of a year during which the company grew
so significantly that it opened an additional switching office in
Bridgeville for its network operations and unveiled plans to construct
a new regional headquarters office building in Marshall Township.

"Our focus is always on our customers first, anticipating needs and
being first to introduce new products and services to meet those
needs," explained Jerry Fountain, regional vice president for Bell
Atlantic NYNEX Mobile in Pittsburgh. "That strategy kept us in our
leadership position throughout 1996, with our customer base growing by
more than 40 percent for the third year in a row and our number of
employees up 25 percent in the last 12 months." Bolstered by new
digital technologies, Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile commercially launched
its CDMA (Code Division Multiple
Access) services January 21.

"We offer the most sophisticated digital technology, further
enhancing
our extensive product line," Fountain said.

"We have invested more than $150 million in network improvements
over
the last four years. Our existing analog network already provides
many enhanced features such as authentication for added security,
Caller ID, voice activated dialing, voice mail and message waiting
indicator," Fountain explained. "We will continue to give all
customers the highest quality wireless coverage on the most expansive
network in the area."

Fountain said consumer demand for cellular service remained strong
throughout the year with an increasing number of people buying phones
for safety, security and personal convenience.

"We see that trend continuing in the coming months and have
developed products tailored to specific consumer needs," he said.

The company offers a number of services designed to fulfill the wide
range of consumer requirements. For example, TalkAlong service
includes an affordable portable phone with a low monthly access fee for
service in zones selected by the user. For customers who need constant
communications, the company this year launched its All-In-One phone
that provides a total communications package with caller ID, voice mail
system with message-waiting indicator, alphanumeric paging and an extra
long-life battery.

New retail outlets made purchasing wireless services more convenient
for customers. During 1996, Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile opened
Communications Stores in South Hills Village and the Indiana Mall and
sales kiosks in the Uniontown Mall, the Franklin Mall in Washington,
PA, and the Beaver County Mall in Monaca. Additional stores are
planned for 1997.

The growing use of wireless data transmissions saw a number of new
applications in the Pittsburgh area this year.

"Utility firms now use our wireless network to monitor pipeline
pressure and do meter readings. Waste treatment companies can weigh
trash dumpsters at pick- up to improve the efficiency of their
operations," Fountain explained. "We are working with a
company that
monitors product supplies in vending machines with remote wireless
data transmissions to ensure product freshness and availability."

Expanded uses for wireless services were the driving force behind Bell
Atlantic NYNEX Mobile's opening of a new $16 million switching
facility in Bridgeville to house network operations. Employment at
the company's McCandless Township headquarters grew so significantly
that the company unveiled plans to construct a new building in the
Thorn Hill Industrial Park in Marshall Township and announced its
intention to relocate to that site in late 1997.

The company continued its commitment to community service throughout
1996. In fact, Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile joined with the Cellular
Telecommunications Industry Association in its COPP (Communities on
Phone Patrol) program, through which the company donates phones and
service to citizens' crimewatch programs in the region. More than 100
local community special events also benefited from Bell Atlantic NYNEX
Mobile's "Wireless At Work" program through which the company
loans
phones and provides free service for events in communities throughout
western Pennsylvania.

"It was an exciting year of growth for every aspect of our company
in
Pittsburgh," Fountain concluded. "We face new challenges and
new
competition in the coming year. But we have built such a strong
foundation that we are confident that our superior network and
superior value will maintain our leadership position here."

Bell Atlantic NYNEX Mobile, the
largest
wireless service provider on
the East Coast, has its Pittsburgh Regional Headquarters in McCandless
Township with a 24-hour-a-day Customer Service Department. The
company's retail locations are in Downtown Pittsburgh at 2 PPG Place;
North Hills at 4930 McKnight Road and in the Ross Park Mall; South
Hills at 2895 Banksville Road and in South Hills Village; Robinson
Town Centre; Shadyside at 810 South Aiken Avenue; Monroeville at 3828
William Penn Highway; Century III Mall in West Mifflin; Indiana Mall
in Indiana; Moraine Pointe Plaza in Butler; Westmoreland Mall in
Greensburg; Beaver Valley Mall in Monaca; Franklin Mall in Washington;
and the Uniontown Mall in Uniontown.

####