August 22, 1995

NYNEX CONTACT: Media Relations, (212) 395-0500

NYNEX Contract to Save Erie County $800,000

BUFFALO -- NYNEX and Erie County officials today announced a new telecommunications contract that is expected to save the county more than $800,000 over the next five years.

The agreement provides the county with discounts on local telecommunications charges under a discount plan that was developed by NYNEX earlier this year for business customers making a large number of local calls. Erie County generates an estimated $600,000 in local calling charges annually and, with the discounts, is expected to save about $160,000 each year.

In exchange for the discounts, Erie County has made a long-term commitment to use NYNEX as its primary telecommunications company. Erie County is one of the largest NYNEX customers in upstate New York.

"This new agreement reflects NYNEXs determination to cut our costs and lower our prices under the new Incentive Regulation Plan. Were delighted that Erie County could be one of the first to take advantage of this," said Joseph A. DeMauro, vice president and general manager of NYNEX operations in Western New York.

"We're constantly looking to save our taxpayers money, wherever and whenever we can," said Erie County Executive Dennis T. Gorski, "and this agreement with NYNEX is a great example. We'll cut our phone bills by $800,000 over the next five years.

"Over the past five years we lobbied the state Public Service Commission to reduce phone bills for county residents and the government," Gorski added, "and we're delighted to say that all that hard work is now paying off in savings."

"The Incentive Regulation Plan recently approved in Albany encourages us to move more aggressively to provide competitive prices for the best quality service," DeMauro said. "Our customers will see more of this in the weeks and months ahead."

DeMauro added that the majority of Erie County residential customers can expect to start paying lower prices for local telephone service beginning September 1. As a result of the Incentive Regulation agreement more than 200,000 flat-rate service customers in the Buffalo local calling area will see their monthly bills drop $2.11 on Sept. 1. In addition, residential customers subscribing to Touch-tone will see an additional savings of 50 cents a month when charges for the service are eliminated on Sept. 1.

This will produce total savings of more than $46 million for these customers over the seven-year life of the plan.

NYNEX is a global communications and media company that provides a full range of services in the northeastern United States and high-growth markets around the world, including the United Kingdom, Thailand, Gibraltar, Greece, Indonesia, the Philippines, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic.

The Corporation is a leader in the telecommunications, wireless communications, cable television, directory publishing and entertainment and information services.

FAX copies of recent NYNEX news releases are available free of charge, 24 hours a day. Call 1-800-331-1214 and an automated system will provide instructions.

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