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To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (2115)	12/15/1998 10:04:00 AM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3178

FCC members say have open mind on telecom mergers WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A majority of the five-member U.S. Federal Communications Commission on Monday said they remained undecided about three telecommunications megamergers. Chairman William Kennard and other Democrats Susan Ness and Gloria Tristani each said at a hearing in Washington that they had open minds on the proposed combination of SBC Communications Inc. (NYSE:SBC - news) with Ameritech Corp. (NYSE:AIT - news), Bell Atlantic Corp. (NYSE:BEL - news) with GTE Corp. (NYSE:GTE - news) and AT&T Corp. (NYSE:T - news) with Tele-Communications Inc. (Nasdaq:LBTYA - news) ''I approach these mergers with a completely open mind,'' Kennard said. ''My mind is not made up.'' But Kennard said the merging companies must demonstrate that they have abided by the 1996 Telecommunications Act and conditions imposed on previous mergers. The ''single most important question'' for the FCC was how the deals would ''benefit consumers,'' he added. The FCC has separate powers from the Justice Department in reviewing telecommunications mergers, and can block or impose conditions on the deals. Tristani said she had not decided yet but had ''skepticism'' about the rationale provided by SBC, Ameritech, GTE and Bell Atlantic that they needed to become larger to compete outside of their existing regions. Ness said it was ''essential that we keep an open mind on this.'' Republicans Michael Powell and Harold Furchgott-Roth, who have previously been less skeptical of the proposed mergers, were more circumspect. Powell made no opening comments and Furchgott-Roth questioned why the FCC had not developed clear standards to govern its merger reviews. The FCC will hear from supporters and opponents of the mergers at Monday's hearing, including black leader Jesse Jackson, consumer groups and Internet company executives.