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To: porcupine --''''> who wrote (1040)	12/11/1998 12:18:00 PM
From: David C. Burns	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 1722

GM Interview Message 6785424

To: porcupine --''''> who wrote (1040)	12/15/1998 11:22:00 PM
From: porcupine --''''>	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1722

[Better late than never:] RESEARCH ALERT - AT&T upgraded to buy NEW YORK, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Schroder & Co. telecommunications analyst Philip Sirlin said Wednesday he upgraded AT&T Corp. to buy from sell and raised the price target to $80 a share from $50 a share. -- said it appears AT&T will continue announcing improvements to its strategic position. -- AT&T on Tuesday agreed to buy International Business Machines Corp.'s global network for $5 billion, the latest in a string of acquisitions and alliances. -- said expects AT&T to forge alliances with new cable television companies in the next few months, which would build on its existing agreement to buy cable television giant Tele-Communications Inc. -- shares of AT&T, the most active issue on the New York Stock Exchange, gained 2-7/16 to 69-3/8. (( Jessica Hall, New York newsroom 212-859-1729))

To: porcupine --''''> who wrote (1040)	12/17/1998
From: porcupine --''''>	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1722

S&P may still cut AT&T Corp ratings (Press release provided by Standard & Poor's) NEW YORK, Dec 14 - Standard & Poor's long-and short-term ratings of AT&T Corp. remain on CreditWatch with negative implications (see list below). On Dec. 8, 1998, AT&T announced a series of new initiatives with International Business Machines Corp. (IBM). . AT&T will purchase IBM's global network business for $5 billion in cash, IBM will remain a significant customer of this new AT&T business, and AT&T will outsource to IBM certain of its data processing needs. AT&T's ratings were placed on CreditWatch with negative implications on June 24, 1998, after the company's announcement of a definitive merger agreement between itself and Tele-Communications Inc. Standard & Poor's maintained AT&T's ratings on CreditWatch with negative implications after its July 27, 1998 announcement of its plans to form a joint venture combining its international network with that of British Telecommunications PLC (BT). The IBM acquisition and outsourcing agreements represent a continuation of the strategy of AT&T's new chairman, Michael Armstrong, to quickly and aggressively expanding the scope and breadth of the company's communications product line. The new strategy has been end-to-end facilities based, global in scope, focused on data and Internet protocol applications, and focused on network outsourcing businesses. These guidelines have lead to a string of acquisitions and joint ventures, including: -- The acquisition of Teleport Communications Group Inc., a competitive local exchange carrier serving business customers; -- The pending TCI acquisition, giving AT&T a stable, well protected cable TV cash flow and the potential to sell broadband data and local telephone service to residential customers; -- The BT joint venture, providing end-to-end connectivity in the premium international communications link between the U.S. and U.K.; and -- The IBM global network business. The IBM global network moves AT&T up the value added chain from transport to the management of global data networks. The acquisition gives AT&T a valuable customer list of international clients: several hundred large global companies, tens of thousands of midsized businesses, and more than one million individual Internet users in 59 countries. The acquisition increases AT&T's expected revenue by $2.5 billion, and jump-starts AT&T's entry into the global data management business. IBM will remain an anchor tenant, giving AT&T added credibility in these markets. In June, when Standard & Poor's placed AT&T's ratings on CreditWatch with negative implications, it stated that, based on the initial assessment of current information, the anticipated corporate credit rating for AT&T and Tele-Communications would be no lower than single-'A'. In light of the IBM network acquisition, Standard & Poor's still believes single-'A' to be the most likely lower bound of the AT&T rating. However, a final decision on the rating will require a more detailed review of the company's financial forecast for the global network business. The number and scope of AT&T's recent acquisitions and joint ventures add complexity to the successful implementation of its overall strategy. To resolve the CreditWatch placement, Standard and Poor's will review with AT&T the specifics of how these new ventures will accelerate revenue growth and how management plans to achieve its planned cost synergies. RATINGS REMAINING ON CREDITWATCH WITH NEGATIVE IMPLICATIONS AT&T Corp. Corporate credit rating AA-/A-1+ Senior unsecured debt AA- Commercial paper A-1+