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To: Eric L who wrote (19257)	4/1/2002 6:29:34 AM
From: kech	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 34857

Maybe not "lack of alternative" but lack of a very attractive alternative. With GPRS wheezing along at 20 kbps, marginally faster than IS-95A CDMA, what is the attraction of attaching Wi-fi access to such a standard? Anyone can do it (the wi-fi part) and nothing accrues to Voicestream since no one will want to use the GPRS part. Edge? Maybe that is a real "lack of alternative" - it remains to be seen, literally.

To: Eric L who wrote (19257)	4/1/2002 9:08:33 AM
From: elmatador	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 34857

Defaults Seem Near for Latin Units of BellSouth and Verizon By SIMON ROMERO he BellSouth Corporation (news/quote) and Verizon Communications (news/quote), two of the largest telephone companies, signaled yesterday that their Latin American operations were preparing to default on hundreds of millions of dollars of debt because of economic problems in Brazil and Argentina. The defaults would be further evidence of a shift in the business climate in South America. Foreign utilities that leapt into the region's economies in the 1990's when they opened their markets to competition have had problems after policy changes and less generous international borrowing markets limited chances for profitability. BellSouth's subsidiary in Brazil, the mobile phone carrier BCP, which primarily provides service in the city of São Paulo, missed a $375 million debt payment yesterday, people close to the company said. BellSouth and its Brazilian partner, the Safra Group, have been unable to reach a definitive solution for BCP's debt situation with its creditors, a group of large banks. COMMENTS: <<Argentina was no surprise. But this one is new!!! On Brazlian newspaper -yesterday- said that Safra was willing to pay the $375 million, but BellSouth was against, rumoured that perhaps BellSotuh has another startegy to withdraw from Brazil. Wait for more retreat from the shopping spree in foregin lands of the 90s>> Brazil's abrupt currency devaluation in 1999 and subsequent economic slowdown are at the heart of BellSouth's problems in that country. Its unit's revenue is almost entirely in local currency, while its debt is mostly in dollars. That means it has fewer resources with which to honor its obligations abroad. The default by the BellSouth unit would be one of the largest by a subsidiary of an American company in Brazil, and it is expected to lead to greater caution by banks that are considering lending to large Brazilian companies. While the default is not expected to alter the parent company's debt rating in the United States, BellSouth may need to take a charge against earnings because of its unit's difficulties in Brazil. Jeff Battcher, a spokesman for BellSouth, declined to comment on the problems in Brazil. BellSouth is seeking to renegotiate a $1.7 billion loan it got from a group of banks in 1998. In neighboring Argentina, a country with more severe economic problems than Brazil, Verizon sought to distance itself from the problems of its wireless communications company there by transferring a 17 percent stake in the company, CTI Holdings, to a newly created trust for its Argentine employees. Verizon will reduce its stake in the company to 48 percent from 65 percent as a result of the transfer. The move will allow Verizon to shift CTI off its balance sheet, limiting the parent company's exposure to its losses, said Peter Thonis, a spokesman for Verizon. Problems at the Argentine company are not expected to affect Verizon's debt rating in the United States or have a large negative effect on earnings. Verizon's unit in Argentina is seeking to renegotiate debt of about $1 billion, the company said in a regulatory filing last week. So far, CTI has missed a coupon payment of about $15 million to creditors, people close to the company said. Verizon's Argentine unit would not be the first subsidiary of a foreign company to default on its debt in the country. MetroGas, a gas distributor controlled by the BG Group (news/quote) of Britain and Repson of Spain, has signaled plans to default on its debt as a result of Argentina's economic crisis.