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To: IBMikey who wrote (213)	8/4/1999 5:33:00 PM
From: Mark Duper	Respond to of 10485

Competitive Local Phone Stks -2: Pricing Threat Feared By Shawn Young 16:37 ET Dow Jones News Service (Copyright (c) 1999, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.) NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Shares of local phone companies that compete with the giant Baby Bells took a pounding for the third day in a row Wednesday as investors worried that regulatory changes could hurt the newcomers. A coalition of Bells and big long-distance carriers have hammered out a suggested framework for reforming the access charges that long-distance carriers pay to send traffic along local networks. Some think that could unsettle rates and hamper the local upstarts' ability to beat the incumbents on price, particularly in lucrative urban business markets. "They're getting clobbered because there's a perception that this latest round of access charge reform is negative for them," said Deutsche Banc Alex Brown analyst Kevin Moore. Interest rate concerns also weighed on the stocks of the companies, as they do most heavily on fast-growing startups. Among the sufferers were Allegiance Telecom Inc. (ALGX), down 8% recently despite a big investment from technology magnate Paul Allen, and Nextlink Communications Inc. (NXLK), down 6.2% after a 15.9% drop Tuesday. Merger partners Qwest Communications International Inc. (QWST) and US West Inc. (USW) also were down, with Qwest falling 6.4% to a level that could undermine the deal if it were sustained. US West was down 3.9%. Global Crossing Ltd. (GBLX) and its merger partner Frontier Corp. (FRO) were taking an even worse drubbing, with Global Crossing dropping 9.2% and also hitting a price that could weaken its deal with Frontier, which recently was down 12.4%. Others affected by the investor fears about local upstarts included Covad Communications Group Inc. (COVD) down 8.7%; Metromedia Fiber Network Inc. (MFNX), down 11.6%; Winstar Communications Inc. (WCII), down 15.9%; Teligent Inc. (TGNT), down 3.7%; Rhythms Netconnections Inc. (RTHM), down 12.1%; Northpoint Communications Group Inc. (NPNT), down 11.7%; GST Telecommunications Inc. (GSTX), down 1.3%; McLeodUSA Inc. (MCLD), down 8%; e.Spire Communications Inc. (ESPI), down 4.2%; ITC DeltaCom Inc. (ITCD), down 4.9%; Hyperion Telecommunications Inc. (HYPT), down 10.8%; MGC Communications Inc. (MGCX), down 5.4%; and Intermedia Communications Inc. (ICIX), down 6.1%. (MORE) DOW JONES NEWS 08-04-99 03:53 PM Competitive Local Phone Stks-3: Reaction Called Overdone 16:37 ET Dow Jones News Service (Copyright (c) 1999, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.) There is debate among analysts about how serious a threat the regulatory changes would be to the competitive local carriers if they were enacted, but investors are apparently in no mood to wait and see. "Exaggerated market reaction to access reform is misplaced," wrote Goldman Sachs & Co. analyst Frank Governali in a research report. "Full changes to access regime won't occur overnight, and don't disadvantage competitive local operators or integrated carriers." The big incumbent carriers submitted their proposal to the Federal Communications Commission last week, but it may not be adopted right away and may not survive in its current form for a variety of reasons, including resistance from consumer advocates. The plan is intended to address several complex regulatory issues and ideally could encourage local phone competition. It would have the effect of lowering long-distance charges and raising local phone bills. The proposal is seen as good for long-distance carriers because it would lower their costs and spur demand. It is seen as neutral or good for the local incumbents because they would be able to collect from customers some of what they lose from long-distance carriers. Investors worry that local competitors will be the losers. "Anyone competing against the incumbent local carriers would lose some of their pricing umbrella in a falling access charge environment and lose some of the cream skimming/access arbitrage opportunity," Governali wrote. "But all the competitive local exchange carriers have been planning their businesses with the expectation of falling access charges." Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. analyst Tod Jacobs said reform could potentially create opportunities for carriers willing to compete for residential and rural customers. - Shawn Young; 201-938-5248; shawn.young@cor.dowjones.com (END) DOW JONES NEWS 08-04-99 04:37 PM

To: IBMikey who wrote (213)	8/4/1999 5:37:00 PM
From: Mark Duper	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 10485

Qwest Communications Looks To Extend Its DSL Service 16:10 ET Dow Jones Business News (Copyright (c) 1999, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.) DENVER -(Dow Jones)- Qwest Communications International Inc. Wednesday said it is providing Digital Subscriber Line, or DSL, service in 13 U.S. markets. The high-speed broadband Internet communications company (QWST) said it plans to expand to more than 30 major markets by the end of the year. The service is now available in Boston, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, Seattle and Washington as well as in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, Sacramento and Orange County, Calif. Markets slated for service later this year include Austin, Texas; Baltimore; Cleveland, Columbus, Ohio; Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Hartford, Conn.; Houston, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Portland, Ore.; Raleigh, N.C.; Salt Lake City, St. Louis and Tampa, Fla. The company's current size gives it one of the largest footprints in the industry. Qwest's DSL service packages start at $49.95 per month for consumers and $119.95 per month for businesses. Every DSL service package includes end-to-end Internet access, and a one-time installation fee of $500. Later, the service also will provide other Internet Protocol services, including application hosting, virtual private networks and voice-over IP. Qwest has made investments in and is working with two local-broadband access providers, Rhythms NetConnections Inc. (RTHM) and Covad Communications Group Inc. (COVD). Qwest also said it plans to expand into other markets through its own construction and additional strategic alliances.