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To: Glenn McDougall who wrote (13513)	10/1/1999 9:59:00 PM
From: zbyslaw owczarczyk	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 18016

Sprint Corp. CEO Addresses MCI Merger Talk By Carey Gillam OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (Reuters) - A possible merger between Sprint Corp. (NYSE:FON - news) and MCI WorldCom Inc. (Nasdaq:WCOM - news) would likely face few regulatory and antitrust concerns, Sprint Chairman and Chief Executive Officer William Esrey said Friday. Esrey said he could not comment on whether Sprint and MCI were actually engaged in merger discussions, but he said 'hypothetically' if a merger were to occur, it could be completed within 12 to 18 months. Esrey said that Sprint has been the subject of rumored speculation with many different companies, and each would have different hurdles to overcome. ``I think we could do a merger with MCI WorldCom.. I think we could do one with ... Deutsche Telekom AG (NYSE:DT - news), or France Telecom (NYSE:FTE - news) ...' Esrey said. ``They all would have different (regulatory) situations. ``If you look at Deutsche Telekom, France Telecom, there might be some EU questions... In terms of MCI WorldCom, I think it's pretty clear that that merger could go through.' Esrey said divestiture issues with MCI WorldCom would likely involve Internet-related assets, however. ``There may be some Internet assets because of the extent of Internet backbone that Sprint has and WorldCom has together that you'd probably have a divestiture there, which would not be a big deal,' Esrey said. Esrey stressed that Sprint is not looking for a suitor, is not ``in play' and prefers to remain independent. But, he said, ``if anybody comes up and offers us a price or creates a situation where we think the future is better, we will pay attention and we would act on that.' Rumors of merger talks between the long-distance giants heated up late last week, and some news outlets have reported that a formal announcement of an agreement could come Monday. The talk followed reports that merger discussions between Sprint and Germany's Deutsche Teleost had stalled. Sprint, Deutsche Teleost and France Tenneco are partners in a troubled international venture called Global One and are currently trying to dissolve the venture's ownership structure. A combination of Sprint and Clinton, Miss.-based MCI World would control about 32 percent of the long-distance phone market. Esrey's comments Friday came following the official dedication of the company's new 3.9 million-square-foot world headquarters in Overland Park, Kan. The sprawling complex is still under construction and work is going ``full-steam ahead,' according to contractors, though the building that is to house Esrey and other corporate officers is not yet completed. Local and state economic development officials are fearful that a merger would cost them the corporate headquarters and have been scrambling to develop plans to negotiate to keep a large chunk of Sprint operations in the area should a merger occur. As well, Sprint employees have been growing increasingly anxious over the speculation about their company's future. Esrey said that Sprint officials were unable to reassure employees about their futures at this point, though he hoped tension would ease soon. ``Lack of information is anxiety and you want to clear that up as soon as possible,' he said.