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To: straight life who wrote (21063)	1/9/1999 10:26:00 PM
From: SKIP PAUL	Respond to of 152472

MCI WorldCom, Without AirTouch, May Still Pursue Wireless By CRAIG KARMIN Dow Jones Newswires NEW YORK -- MCI WorldCom Inc.'s (WCOM) announcement late Friday that it will not bid on AirTouch Communications Inc. (ATI) doesn't mean that the telecom giant won't soon pursue other options for wireless service. "After reviewing the possibility of a combination with AirTouch Communications, MCI WorldCom has determined not to pursue a bid for company at this time," said a MCI WorldCom spokesman in a statement. "We will continue to explore opportunities that best address the interests of MCI WorldCom customers and shreholders,"the statement concluded. Industry observers have noted that MCI WorldCom chief executive Bernie Ebbers -- whose company has made more than 50 acquistions in the past 10 years -- has been unethusiastic about the wireless industry. But the company's acknowledgement that it considered a deal seemed to suggest a thaw in his resistance. This may be especially true now that WorldCom owns MCI, which added millions of retail consuemrs to the acquirer's mostly business customer base. "He has said that wireless is not yet a strategic enough part of the package for their core customers," said Mel Marten, an analyst with Edward Jones. "That is probably changing, but AirTouch was not the best way to go about it." Despite a price tag that might have cost more than $50 billion, AirTouch would have brought only a regional wireless footprint, leaving MCI WorldCom at a disadvantage to the national prescence of AT&T Corp. (T) and Sprint PCS (PCS), analysts noted. Still, they said the market should not rule out persistent speculation that MCI WorldCom could acquire Nextel Communications Inc. (NXTL), the last remaining major independent wireless carrier besides AirTouch. MCI WorldCom's formal withdrawl from the process leaves Bell Atlantic Corp. (BEL) and the U.K.'s Vodafone Group Plc. (VOD) still with offers on the table for AirTouch. Market participants said that an announcement by AirTouch could come as early as Monday.