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To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (1443)	10/5/1998 7:51:00 AM
From: Frank A. Coluccio	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3178

Stephen, the embedded capabilities mentioned in the Nortel-Telogy release are interesting, while also predictable, if one follows the evolution of this space. But they seem a bit vague as to how they would actully implement the offering in such a way that it can be accessed by users. I'm looking for a more nuts-and-bolts architectural description of this and the anymedia counter-offering from LU. Anything you or others here may have on this would be appreciated. The upstream fabric from the Meridian towards the cloud would also be interesting to examine and compare. Thanks, and Regards, Frank Coluccio

To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (1443)	10/5/1998 11:33:00 PM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 3178

IXC Expands Internet Strategy With New Suite of Wholesale Services AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 5, 1998-- Company's new Internet product portfolio, recent strategic acquisitions and advanced nationwide fiber network combine to create a comprehensive Internet offering IXC Communications Inc. (Nasdaq:IIXC) today introduced a new turnkey, branded suite of Internet wholesale services that will provide nationwide access and simplified connections to the Internet. The availability of new services, combined with the company's recent strategic Internet-related acquisitions and the continued expansion of its coast-to-coast fiber network, demonstrates the company's commitment to establishing itself as the industry's leading Internet solutions provider. IXC's new Internet product portfolio, which is targeted at ISPs, resellers, CLECs and other telecommunications service providers, includes dial-up services with access to more than 750 dial-up POPs in more than 500 cities nationwide, and dedicated services in the top 100 MSAs. The company also will provide customized solutions for Domain Name Services (DNS), E-mail and USENET News. Unique to the IXC product suite is a full range of back office support functions including branded order entry and provisioning, technical support and billing services. To simplify Internet connectivity for customers requiring dedicated services, IXC also will offer a comprehensive line of customer premise equipment and management services. "IXC's Internet services have developed as a result of a solid integrated growth strategy that has included network enhancements, strategic acquisitions and partnerships," said Benjamin L. Scott, chairman and CEO of IXC. "As a result, we have rapidly increased the reach of our digital fiber optic network while providing our customers with a diverse range of services to meet all their communications needs." Earlier this year, IXC expanded its Internet business with the acquisitions of SMARTNAP; Network Evolutions Inc.; The Data Place Inc.; and ntr.net Corporation. ntr.net, a Louisville-based ISP, has received national recognition as one of the top five ISPs in dial-up services as ranked by CNET, and was named a "Best Value" in dial up access in the 1998 Boardwatch study. The company also is the first carrier in its class to integrate multiple tier-1 dial networks. Adding to the diverse technical expertise and product offerings of these companies is IXC's recent equity stake in AppliedTheory, a New York-based ISP whose team of experts includes a number of specialists who were involved in the Internet's original development. Taken together, IXC's recent strategic moves have enabled the company to provide the market with a comprehensive, multi-tiered Internet solution. IXC's new product suite will be available on November 2. Web hosting and e-commerce services will be added to the offering by the end of this year. IXC's complete network offering includes state-of-the-art fiber optic and optronic technologies for access to private line, switched, broadband and Internet services. For example, non-zero dispersion shifted fiber maximizes bandwidth and supports the most advanced multiplexing technologies, while ATM and Frame Relay techniques address the growing demand for advanced data services. IXC's network-based delivery solutions are designed to address the speed and capacity requirements of the global communications market. Having completed the first new coast-to-coast fiber optic network in the United States in more than a decade, IXC Communications Inc. is at the forefront of the industry's new class of emerging domestic and international carriers. IXC offerings include private line, broadband, Internet and long distance switched and dedicated services. IXC is a publicly traded company listed on Nasdaq under the symbol IIXC. IXC's Web site is at www.ixc-comm.com.

To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (1443)	10/8/1998 9:46:00 AM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 3178

OT> But like I said earlier, why should the Bells give up home turf, just to get a piece of sod somewhere else? CAL. PUC STAFF SAYS PAC BELL STILL FLUNKS MOST OF SEC. 271 CHECKLIST October 8, 1998 COMMUNICATIONS DAILY via NewsEdge Corporation : After months of work with Pacific Bell and other parties, staff of Cal. PUC late Mon. reported that carrier still hasn't complied with 10 of 14 points on Telecom Act's local competition checklist for long distance entry into state that has nation's biggest telecom market. Pac Bell, unit of SBC, said in response that PUC staff wrongly discounted its many market-opening efforts. PUC staff said that after series of informational meetings with parties, preliminary assessment issued in July and 5 weeks of collaborative sessions this summer aimed at finding solutions, Pac Bell still had serious problems with ordering and provisioning systems used by competitive local exchange companies (CLECs), with colocation requirements, and with dispute resolution. PUC staff said 5 main problems seemed to be behind all of Pac Bell's noncompliance with checklist: (1) Local interconnection agreements "are not functioning as commercial contracts but rather as playing fields for constant litigious behavior" between parties with unequal bargaining power. (2) Pac Bell still treats CLECs as adversaries that it has been coerced into serving. (3) Pac Bell hasn't demonstrated ability to handle CLEC service needs on mass-market scale. (4) Pac Bell "designs solutions only to meet perceived legal requirements of Section 271" rather than making sincere effort to meet CLEC needs. (5) Pac Bell is unable to produce incontrovertible performance numbers to prove that its systems and processes are nondiscriminatory and fair to CLECs. Staff report, which is 175 pages long, includes many suggestions for bringing Pac Bell into full checklist compliance. Among major suggestions, staff said PUC needs to reassert its role as neutral 3rd party with authority to bring about timely settlement of disputes, while Pac Bell needs to stop denying its role as wholesale supplier to CLECs and get on with serving CLECs as co-carriers. Report also recommends Pac Bell determine CLEC needs and requirements before developing any new ordering interfaces, develop multiple cageless colocation alternatives, meet with CLECs to develop solutions to white pages, directory assistance and 911 ordering concerns. Administrative Law Judge Jaqueline Reed will take staff report, along with comments from Pac Bell and other parties, and recommend final list of Pac Bell 271 compliance actions for adoption by full PUC at Nov. meeting. Staff said that while it can recommend solutions, only Pac Bell can take necessary actions. If Pac Bell wants state endorsement of its long distance entry, PUC staff said, it must demonstrate compliance with Section 271's intent that local markets be open to meaningful competition, "not simply that it has implemented a specific set of corrective actions." In addition to key conclusions, staff said Pac Bell isn't complying fully with Sec. 272 requirements for structural separation of local exchange and long distance operations because it hasn't separated personnel and reporting relationships sufficiently, and has insufficient safeguards against misuse of proprietary customer information. In July report, staff found Pac Bell in compliance only on nondiscriminatory pole/rights-of-way access, nondiscriminatory number assignment, local dialing parity. In ensuing months, said new report, Pac Bell also has moved into compliance on reciprocal compensation. Pac Bell said it was "disappointed that the staff report did not reflect today's highly competitive [Cal.] market and the significant progress Pacific Bell has made to open the door to full competition." Company said it has negotiated "hundreds" of interconnection agreements, installed 600 colocation cages for competitors at 150 central offices, faces about 150 local competitors. Telco said it will continue forward with its Sec. 271 application and over coming weeks "we will document and prove we have met the [Telecom Act] requirements." AT&T lauded staff report for recognizing that Pac Bell still is " woefully short" of meeting its obligations to CLECs and for giving Pac Bell "a clear road map of the many steps it must take to open the local market to real competition." MCI WorldCom said report calls attention to barriers Pac Bell has erected to thwart local competition, its attempts to do bare minimum needed to gain long distance approval, its inability to meet CLEC needs. MCI applauded PUC staff for blazing path that, "if Pac Bell chooses to follow," will bring competition's benefits to all Californians.

To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (1443)	10/8/1998 9:48:00 AM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Respond to of 3178

OT> Everybody wants that 1+ equal access dialing> MCI WorldCom Urges Opening of Massachusetts Local Toll Market; Asks DTE to Order Equal Access Dialing by Early 1999 October 8, 1998 BOSTON, Oct. 7 /PRNewswire/ via NewsEdge Corporation -- At a hearing before the Department of Telecommunications and Energy (DTE) today, MCI WorldCom urged state regulators to open the local toll market to true competition by ordering 1+ equal access dialing for all such calls in the Commonwealth by February 8, 1999. "Massachusetts phone customers deserve the option and ease of choosing among carriers for their local toll service -- just like they do their long distance provider today," said Robert Lopardo, MCI WorldCom regional director of Law and Public Policy. "Until that happens, local toll callers are required to dial a confusing code to access any service provider other than Bell Atlantic -- a practice MCI WorldCom considers anticompetitive and anticonsumer. Moreover," he added, "customers are missing out on competitive pricing for local toll calls, as states that have introduced equal access dialing historically have seen a reduction in these rates." For example, if a caller currently wants MCI WorldCom to carry a call from Boston to Lowell, they must dial 10+10+222+1+Phone Number. Simply dialing the number now sends these calls to Bell Atlantic, regardless of which carrier the caller actually prefers. By implementing equal access dialing, the DTE will eliminate inconvenient access codes and allow every customer to automatically route their local toll calls to their carrier of choice, including Bell Atlantic, by dialing 1+Phone Number. Regulators in Connecticut, Maine, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont have all previously ordered Bell Atlantic to provide its customers with the ability to freely choose a provider other than Bell Atlantic to carry city-to-city toll calls without being forced to dial cumbersome seven-digit access codes. The federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 clearly says state regulators can require "dialing parity" in the local toll market as of February, and many states across the U.S. are in the midst of proceedings to ensure that consumers will be required to dial only "1+ the number" when making local toll calls -- regardless of which company provides the connection. "This issue is all about delivering customer choice, convenience and the benefits of local toll competition," said Lopardo. "We urge the DTE to ensure that all Massachusetts consumers can enjoy these benefits as soon as the law allows -- February 1999. Bell Atlantic should not be rewarded for protecting its local phone monopoly, nor should it be allowed to control the timing of 1+ implementation." MCI WorldCom is a global telecommunications company with revenues of more than $30 billion and established operations in over 65 countries encompassing the Americas, Europe and the Asia-Pacific regions. MCI WorldCom is a premier provider of facilities-based and fully integrated local, long distance, international and Internet services. MCI WorldCom's global networks, including its state-of-the-art pan-European network and transoceanic cable systems, provide end-to-end high-capacity connectivity to more than 35,000 buildings worldwide. For more information on MCI WorldCom, visit the World Wide Web at mciworldcom.com or wcom.com. SOURCE MCI WorldCom