Southwestern Bell to Begin Joint-Marketing Cellular and Telephone Network Services

Enhances 'One-Stop' Shopping for Consumers

St. Louis, Missouri, March 20, 1996

When area customers call Southwestern Bell to begin new residential telephone service next week, they'll also be able to order, for the first time, cellular service and phones, which will be conveniently delivered to their doorstep, Southwestern Bell announced today.

"Thanks to the recently enacted federal telecommunications reform bill, our regional network sales representatives will begin offering cellular service and cellular long-distance to new residential telephone customers," said Lea Ann Champion, vice president/general manager, Southwestern Bell - Eastern Missouri. "We'll also deliver cellular phones ordered through this new venture to our customers' doorsteps, which reflects how easy and convenient it is to do business with us; no hassles."

Southwestern Bell will offer cellular service through its network business office to customers who place orders for new residential service and live in Southwestern Bell's overlapping telephone and cellular service areas. These areas include the Lake of the Ozarks region and Eastern Missouri, from northern St. Louis and St. Charles counties to the Missouri Bootheel.

Eastern Missouri will be the first region in Southwestern Bell's traditional five-state service territory to begin co-marketing its landline network and cellular products and services, Champion said, adding that by mid-year customers will have the option to see network, wireless and cellular long-distance services on a combined monthly bill.

Southwestern Bell will begin similar joint marketing programs in Kansas City, Dallas, San Antonio, West Texas and Oklahoma City this spring.

Beginning May 1, many authorized agents of Southwestern Bell's cellular phone division in the greater St. Louis area also will begin selling a variety of the company's network services, such as Caller ID and Caller ID display units, Voice Dial, Call Notes and The Works, a bundled package of Easy Options calling services that include Call Waiting, Call Forwarding, Caller ID, Three-Way Calling and Call Blocker.

"We are launching into a new era where our customers will have the ability to obtain network, wireless and cellular long-distance services from one source and, by mid-year, they can all be paid on one monthly bill," said Frank Boyer, head of Southwestern Bell's cellular operations in Eastern Missouri. "Additionally, in May, our customers can pay for these services with their Southwestern Bell Visa card and get a five percent cash-back reward."

Champion and Boyer said while the combined network and cellular marketing effort will apply initially only to residential customers, the joint marketing activities could be extended to business customers later this year.

Customers wishing to establish new residential service and cellular service from Southwestern Bell can call 1-800-203-7070.

Southwestern Bell provides basic and leading-edge telephone services and products to more than 10 million business and residential customers -- a total of more than 14.2 million access lines -- in Texas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kansas. Southwestern Bell provides wireless communications services to more than 3.7 million customers in 63 markets nationwide, including six of the nation's top 20 cities, and is adding new customers at a gross rate of 5,500 every business day.