Access to Cyberspace Becomes More Affordable for New Jersey Consumers

September 5, 1996

Access to Cyberspace Becomes More Affordable for
New Jersey Consumers

Residential ISDN Rates Reduced 14 to 80 Percent
for Bell Atlantic-New Jersey Customers

NEWARK, N.J. - High-speed access to cyberspace from home
soon will be
more affordable and easy to get for New Jersey consumers.

New pricing plans with lower monthly and installation rates for Bell
Atlantic-New Jersey's residential ISDN (Integrated
Services Digital
Network) service were approved today by the Board of Public Utilities.
The new rates, which take effect Oct. 1, are 14 to 80 percent cheaper
than current rates for Bell Atlantic's ISDN service to the home.

ISDN provides a quicker way to transmit and download data, graphics
and images for consumers who use the Internet and on-line services or
for telecommuters who need access to their corporate computer
networks.

In April, Bell Atlantic proposed a range of ISDN usage package options
with price reductions off rates available since November, 1995 under a
special rate authorization. Today, the BPU authorized Bell Atlantic
to offer this pricing structure with interim rates set by the board
which were similar, but slightly lower than Bell Atlantic's proposed
rates. In the future, the BPU will establish permanent rates after it
holds hearings.

With the board's decision today, New Jersey becomes the fourth state
where consumers can take advantage of Bell Atlantic's pricing packages
with reduced ISDN rates. Similar pricing plans are already in effect
in Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania.

Interim pricing plans for monthly residential ISDN service in New
Jersey include five packages ranging from $31 a month for 20 hours of
B-channel use to $108 monthly for 500 hours of B-channel use for
voice, data or video transmission. ISDN provides two B channels that
each transmit data at 64 kilobits per second (Kbps).

For those who need an ISDN data connection 24 hours a day, seven days
a week, an unlimited ISDN usage package now costs $239 monthly.

Consumers who plan to use ISDN for only a few hours a month can buy
measured service for $23.50 monthly plus a local usage fee of 1 cent
per minute per channel.

"These pricing packages make high-speed access very affordable for
consumers, whether they want to surf the 'Net, go on-line or access
their corporate computer network," said Len Lauer, Bell Atlantic-New
Jersey president. "With the rapidly growing consumer demand for
more
bandwidth, we believe this type of pricing will help create a true
mass market for consumer data services."

Installation is now $125, a 25 percent reduction off previous
installation charges for most customers. This does not include inside
wiring, which may be required, and equipment installation. Both can
be purchased from Bell Atlantic or other companies.

Interim monthly rates are as follows:

Measured - $23.50 plus usage charge
20 hours - $31
60 hours - $41
140 hours - $53
300 hours - $75
500 hours - $108
Unlimited - $239

For example, consumers who buy the 60-hour package can get 30 hours if
they use both B channels or 60 hours when they use one B channel for
voice, data or video transmission.

Customers who use more time than the package they select will pay a
local usage fee for the additional time - 1 cent per minute per B
channel.

Currently, Bell Atlantic's residential customers pay $23.90 to $26.08
monthly for ISDN service, plus usage charges of 2 cents per minute per
channel during peak hours (7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday) and
1 cent per minute per channel all other times. Under these rates,
customers pay $59.90 to $98.08 when they use 60 B-channel hours
compared with $41 under the new interim rates.

"We are pleased at the board's approval today of the interim
rates,"
said Curt Koeppen, Bell Atlantic vice president-ISDN. "In the near
future, Bell Atlantic plans to promote our ISDN service so that New
Jersey consumers are aware of these new reduced rates. We anticipate
that many consumers will want to take advantage of the benefits of
ISDN."

ISDN is an all-digital network technology that combines voice, data and
video signals on a single telephone line, and transmits them at speeds
up to 128 Kbps - or as high as 500 Kbps with common compression
techniques available in some of the ISDN-capable equipment. When
compared with 14.4 Kbps analog modems, the increase in speed can be up
to nine-fold.

To order or receive information about Bell Atlantic's residential ISDN
service, customers can call the Bell Atlantic InfoSpeed sales,
provisioning and service center at 1-800-204-7332 Monday through
Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Customers also can send an e-mail
message to isdncin@bell-atl.com. Information also
is available on
Bell Atlantic's residential ISDN home page at
http://www.bell-atl.com/isdn/consumer.

Bell Atlantic Corporation (NYSE:
BEL) is at the forefront of the new
communications, entertainment and information industry. In the
mid-Atlantic region, the company is the premier provider of local
telecommunications and advanced services. Globally, it is one of the
largest investors in the high-growth wireless communication
marketplace. Bell Atlantic also owns a substantial interest in
Telecom Corporation of New Zealand and is actively developing
high-growth national and international business opportunities in all
phases of the industry.

####

Media contact:

Joan Rasmussen (703) 974-8815
joan.m.rasmussen@bell-atl.com