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BellSouth Gains Higher Ranking in J.D. Power and Associates Long Distance Study

Posted on: Thursday, 1 July 2004, 06:00 CDT

ATLANTA, July 1 /PRNewswire/ -- BellSouth today announced that in only its second year of providing long distance service, the company has been ranked third in customer satisfaction out of 15 long distance providers across the country, according to J.D. Power and Associates 2004 Residential Long Distance Telephone Service Study(SM). BellSouth was included along with 14 other long distance providers in the Bundled Service Customer Satisfaction Index of the study, representing over 43 million households nationwide that bundle Long Distance with some other telecommunications product or service.

Nationally, BellSouth had the highest scores in Offerings and Promotions and Customer Service. These two categories represent 34 percent of a customer's overall satisfaction with a long distance provider. BellSouth's No. 3 ranking in this year's J.D. Power and Associates long distance study represents an improvement over the company's No. 4 Mainstream ranking (customers spending less than $30 per month) for 2003.

"Our ability to provide high levels of customer satisfaction starts with BellSouth's people, who take tremendous pride in ensuring that we meet and exceed customers' expectations each and every day," said Rex Adams, president of BellSouth Long Distance Services. "While we are headed in the right direction, we will not be satisfied until we lead the industry in customer satisfaction among long distance providers."

BellSouth Answers(SM) bundles, which provide greater flexibility and overall increased savings to consumers on their monthly communications services, include BellSouth(R) Long Distance Service. BellSouth Answers(SM) expands bundle discounts to a broader base of customers, ranging from those with a single phone line who need one or two communications services to those with needs for more expansive communications solutions, including local, long distance, Internet and Cingular Wireless services.

"Our improved ranking in this J.D. Power and Associates study is a testament to our dedication to meeting customers' high expectations for customer service," said Jan Funderburg, president, BellSouth Consumer Services. "We are committed to delivering long distance and other communications services with world-class customer service at competitive prices. At the same time, we are working diligently to improve the level of customer satisfaction for all of our offerings, including long distance."

BellSouth added 636,000 long distance customers during the first quarter of 2004, for a total of 4.6 million customers and a penetration of its mass- market customers of almost 35 percent -- all within only two years of providing long distance across the Southeast.

To order BellSouth Long Distance, visit http://www.bellsouthcorp.com/longdistance/ . Spanish-speaking customer service representatives are available at 1-888-494-8087.

About BellSouth Corporation

BellSouth Corporation is a Fortune 100 communications company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia and a parent company of Cingular Wireless, the nation's second largest wireless voice and data provider.

Backed by award winning customer service, BellSouth offers the most comprehensive and innovative package of voice and data services available in the market. Through BellSouth Answers(SM), residential and small business customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial up and high speed DSL Internet access and Cingular(R) Wireless service. For businesses, BellSouth provides secure, reliable local and long distance voice and data networking solutions. BellSouth also offers online and directory advertising through BellSouth(R) RealPages.com(sm) and The Real Yellow Pages(R).

More information about BellSouth can be found at http://www.bellsouth.com/ .

About J.D. Power and Associates

Headquartered in Westlake Village, California, J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, consulting, training and customer satisfaction. The firm's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. http://www.jdpower.com/

Long distance service is provided by BellSouth Long Distance, Inc., and is available in BellSouth service areas. Cellular services provided by Cingular(R) Wireless LLC.

BellSouth

CONTACT: Media, Zealous Wiley of BellSouth, +1-404-829-8721, orzealous.wiley@bellsouth.com

Web site: http://www.bellsouth.com/http://www.bellsouthcorp.com/longdistancehttp://www.jdpower.com/

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