Maine Approves Bell Atlantic - GTE Merger

Maine Approves Bell Atlantic - GTE Merger

November 15, 1999

AUGUSTA, Maine -- The Maine Public Utilities Commission
today approved the merger of Bell Atlantic and GTE.

This latest approval leaves only five states reviewing the merger, along
with the Federal Communications Commission. The U.S. Department of
Justice has given its clearance, as have shareholders of the two companies.
The merger also has received endorsements from the AFL-CIO, the
Communications Workers of America, the International Brotherhood of
Electrical Workers, the League of United Latin American Citizens,
Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, the Organization of Chinese-Americans, and
many business and community leaders from areas served by Bell Atlantic
and GTE.

"We are pleased that, as in other states, the benefits of this merger have
been recognized," said Ed Dinan, president of Bell Atlantic - Maine. "We
look forward to bringing these benefits to our customers."

The five remaining states are California, Hawaii, Ohio, Virginia and
Washington. Additional information is available on the World Wide Web
at www.ba.com or www.gte.com.