Bell Atlantic Mobile Ranked Top in Customer Satisfaction in Four Major Markets

BEDMINSTER, NJ — Bell Atlantic Mobile is the leader in overall customer satisfaction among wireless users in New York, Boston, Washington/Baltimore and Pittsburgh, according to the prestigious J.D. Power and Associates 1998 U.S. Wireless Customer Satisfaction Study(sm) released this week.

Bell Atlantic Mobile received top ranking in four of the five of its markets included in the study. In the fifth market, Charlotte, the company ranked second and its sixth major market, Philadelphia, was not included in the study.

Call quality was rated the most important factor in determining satisfaction by the survey respondents. Other factors, in order or importance, were pricing options, corporate capability, customer service, credibility/communications, and roaming/coverage.

"Our guiding philosophy is that cellular service is only as good as the network it's on," said Jack Plating, chief operating officer of Bell Atlantic Mobile. "We've built a network that's premier in both coverage and technology -- which is what drives call quality when the customer picks up their phone and the call goes through, the call is clear, and the call stays connected until the customer ends it. Complementing our premier network, we continually emphasize superb customer service and competitive pricing, including our new DigitalChoice SingleRate(sm) plans - all with the end game being customer satisfaction.

"With increasing competition in each market, we believe it's a significant trend that our customers ranked Bell Atlantic Mobile the customer satisfaction leader in nearly all our markets."

Bell Atlantic Mobile owns and operates the largest wireless network in the East, covering 116,000 square miles, and the largest chain of retail outlets devoted exclusively to wireless voice, data and paging. Based in Bedminster, NJ, Bell Atlantic Mobile has 5.7 million customers and 7,000 employees from Maine to Georgia and, through a separate subsidiary, in the Southwest. Through its "Wireless at Work..." community service program, the company uses its technology to help individuals and communities improve security and emergency communications. Bell Atlantic Mobile's parent is one of the world's largest wireless communications companies, with domestic operations in 25 states and international investments in Mexico, Europe and the Pacific Rim. For more information on Bell Atlantic global operations visit: www.bellatlantic.com/worldwide.

J D. Power and Associates, headquartered in Agoura Hills, Calif. is a global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting and customer satisfaction The firm's quality and satisfaction measurements are based are based on actual customer responses from more than one million consumers annually. J.J. Power and Associates can be accessed through the World Wide Web at www.jdpower.com. The 1998 J.D. Power and Associates 1998 Residential wireless Customer Satisfaction Study is based on the results of a syndicated study independently funded by J.D. Power and Associates, which acts as an unbiased third party analyzing consumer opinions.

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