DATE: Tuesday, July 8, 1997                 TAG: 9707080302

SECTION: BUSINESS                PAGE: D2   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY MICHAEL CLARK, STAFF WRITER 
                                            LENGTH:   30 lines

BELL, MCI MAKE A CONNECTION LONG-DISTANCE PROVIDER CAN MOVE INTO LOCAL PHONE SERVICE MARKET.

MCI Communications moved closer to offering local telephone service in the Old Dominion after reaching agreement with Bell Atlantic-Virginia to connect their networks in-state.

The agreement marks the first comprehensive interconnection and resale agreement between a Bell Atlantic company and a major long-distance company under the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

Under the agreement announced in late June, MCI can connect its facilities with the Bell Atlantic-Virginia network to provide local exchange telephone services in competition with Bell Atlantic.

``That doesn't mean that MCI will be in Norfolk offering local phone service next week,'' said Bell Atlantic-Virginia spokesman Paul Miller. ``If you wanted to subscribe to MCI for local phone service, you couldn't do it unless the local networks were connected.''

Bell Atlantic-Virginia now has agreements with 15 carriers. But Virginia is the first state in the Bell Atlantic region to reach agreement with MCI - which is also the largest carrier signed to an interconnection to date.

By continuing to open the local market to competition, Bell Atlantic-Virginia complies with a 14-point checklist prescribed by the Telecommunications Act that also allows the company to offer long distance service.

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