ATLANTA, Oct. 3 /PRNewswire/ BellSouth today announced that it has increased e-mail storage capacity to 250MB at no additional cost for select small business and consumer broadband customers.

Beginning this month, residential customers of BellSouth(R) FastAccess(R) DSL Ultra (downstream speeds up to 1.5Mbps) and BellSouth(R) FastAccess(R) DSL Xtreme (downstream speeds up to 3Mbps), as well as business customers who utilize those similar speeds, will have 250MB of storage for each of their available e-mail accounts(1). This reflects an increase of more than 10 times the e-mail storage previously offered to each account.

«BellSouth is providing customers with additional space they might need to store more e-mails, attachments, photos and video,» said Pam Jones, vice president of data product management for BellSouth. «As our customers’ needs evolve, BellSouth will continue to consistently provide them with the best value for Internet service.»

The company’s latest move to increase customers’ e-mail space is one of several recent initiatives to enhance customers’ high-speed Internet experiences:

- Earlier this year, BellSouth introduced Video Chat through Instant Messenger, through which customers can engage in live streaming video conversations via their instant messaging services. — In July, BellSouth launched BellSouth(R) Internet Security Service, featuring a host of security applications designed to help keep residential and small business customers safe while online and their PCs free of spyware, viruses and tracking cookies. — BellSouth announced in August that customers who purchase a FastAccess Business DSL product may be eligible to receive a free new domain name and custom email account, such as sales@mygrowingbusiness.com (in addition to the fifteen standard email accounts they currently receive with their purchase).

«This is a great time to purchase FastAccess DSL,» Jones said. «We offer a range of broadband services that allows customers to choose the right speed at the right price, with the right applications to meet their needs.»

BellSouth offers FastAccess DSL for both consumer and business customers. Consumers and businesses interested in BellSouth(R) FastAccess(R) DSL Internet service can find more information online at [ >>> ] or by calling 1–888–321-ADSL.

About BellSouth Corporation

BellSouth Corporation is a Fortune 100 communications company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. BellSouth has joint control and 40 percent ownership of Cingular Wireless, the nation’s largest wireless voice and data provider with 51.6 million customers.

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(R), residential and small business customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial-up and high-speed DSL Internet access, satellite television 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(R) and The Real Yellow Pages(R).

BellSouth believes that diversity and fostering an inclusive environment are critical in maintaining a competitive advantage in today’s global marketplace. More information about BellSouth can be found at [ >>> ]

(1) FastAccess DSL Ultra and FastAccess DSL Xtreme customers receive eight

e-mail boxes; FastAccess DSL Business customers receive 15 e-mail boxes. BellSouth

Web site: [ >>> ]

Company News On-Call: [ >>> ]

ATLANTA, /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ BellSouth Corporation (NYSE:BLS) today announced that Mark Feidler has been named chief operating officer, effective Jan. 1, 2005. Also effective Jan. 1, Dick Anderson, currently president-Customer Markets, has been named vice chairman-planning and administration, and Isaiah (Ike) Harris, has been named president- BellSouth Advertising & Publishing Group. Feidler, Anderson, Harris, Ron Dykes, chief financial officer, and Marc Gary, general counsel, will report directly to Duane Ackerman, chairman and chief executive officer.

"BellSouth has long been recognized as having one of the strongest management teams in the telecom industry," said Ackerman. "By giving our senior executives broad experience in all areas of our business, we continue to develop their leadership abilities and management skills, to the benefit of our customers, shareholders and employees."
Feidler Named Chief Operating Officer.

Mark Feidler joined BellSouth in 1991 as director of strategic transactions. In 1993, he was promoted to vice president of corporate development for BellSouth Corp., and was named president of Interconnection Services three years later. In 1998, he was appointed president of BellSouth Mobility, Inc. In 2001, he was named chief operating officer for Cingular Wireless, a position he held until January 2004, when he was named chief staff officer for BellSouth.

Reporting to Feidler will be Fran Dramis, chief information, eCommerce and security officer; Jan Funderburg, president-Consumer Services; Margaret Greene, president-regulatory and external affairs; Rod Odom, president-Network Services; David Scobey, president-Small Business Services; and Fred Shaftman, president-BellSouth Business.
Keith Cowan, currently president-BellSouth Interconnection Services, will also report to Feidler as president-marketing and product development. Reporting to Cowan will be Donna Lee, chief marketing officer, and Paulino Barros, vice president-product development and management. Barros is currently president of BellSouth's Latin American operations.
Rex Adams will replace Cowan as president of Interconnection Services, reporting to Rod Odom. Adams is currently president-BellSouth Long Distance and vice president-product development and management.

Anderson Named Vice Chairman-Planning and Administration
Reporting to Dick Anderson will be Valencia Adams, vice president and chief diversity officer; Barry Boniface, vice president-planning and development; Becky Dunn, senior vice president-corporate compliance and corporate secretary; William Pate, vice president-advertising and public relations; Dick Sibbernsen, vice president-human resources; Scott Frank, president of BellSouth Intellectual Property Management Corp; and Randy Hudon, director of Corporate Aviation.

Anderson joined South Central Bell in 1981 as an account executive. As chief operating officer for Universal Communication Systems, he led the transition of that company into an integrated equipment services entity for BellSouth. Anderson was named president-Interconnection Services in 1993, and was appointed president-customer markets in October 1999.

Harris Named President of A&P; Smith, Peon to Retire
As president of the Advertising & Publishing Group, Ike Harris will have responsibility for BellSouth Advertising & Publishing Corp., The Berry Company, Stevens Graphics and IntelliVentures, the Internet company that produces RealPages.com. He will continue to have responsibility for BellSouth's Latin American operations and Cellcom. Mauricio Wior, regional vice president-Latin America, will report to Harris until the sale of the BellSouth's remaining Latin American properties is completed.
Since joining BellSouth in 1997, Harris has served as chief financial officer for BellSouth Telecommunications Inc., vice president-corporate finance and president-Consumer Services. Since becoming president of BellSouth Enterprises in January 2004, he has been responsible for BellSouth's Latin American and European operations and BellSouth's Advertising & Publishing Group.

Elmer Smith, president-Advertising & Publishing Group, has announced his retirement, effective March 31, 2005. Smith will continue to report to Harris until his retirement. Prior to his current position, Smith served as president and CEO of The Berry Company, the largest Yellow Pages advertising sales agency in the United States. BellSouth acquired The Berry Company in 1986.

Also announcing his retirement is Roberto Peon, chief marketing officer for BellSouth International. Peon led BellSouth's growth in the Latin American wireless communications industry. He joined BellSouth in 1987 as director of business development for BellSouth International. Prior to his current position, Peon served as vice president-Latin America, president-Brazil operations and CEO for BCPTelecomunicacoes in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Shannon, Wentworth, Droege Named to New Positions
BellSouth has named Pat Shannon senior vice president-finance, reporting to Ron Dykes. Shannon joined BellSouth in 1997 as vice president-finance. He was named vice president-finance and controller in January 2004.

Reporting to Shannon will be Lynn Wentworth, who will move from her current position as vice president and treasurer to vice president and chief financial officer-Communications Group. Wentworth joined BellSouth's financial organization in 1985, and held numerous positions within that organization until being named an officer of BellSouth in January 2003.

Mark Droege has been named vice president and treasurer for BellSouth, reporting to Dykes. Droege, who is currently vice president and chief financial officer-Latin American Group, joined BellSouth in 1986. He has held several key positions, including director-Investor Relations, chief financial officer of DataServ and president-BellSouth Interactive Services, before being named to his present position in April 2000.
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 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(R), residential and small business customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial up and high speed DSL Internet access, satellite television 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(R) and The Real Yellow Pages(R).
More information about BellSouth can be found at [ >>> ] .
Quelle: BellSouth Corporation

Self-Healing Connections Provide Additional Assurance of Business Continuity, According to Florida Customers

ATLANTA, /PRNewswire/ Unaccustomed as they are to discouraging students from attending class, officials of Stetson University in DeLand, Fla., were thankful to have that capability recently. Due to careful planning and communication services from BellSouth, the school was able to get messages out in the midst of a natural disaster.

When Hurricane Frances roared through central Florida, she toppled 100- year-old laurel oak trees and left floodwater standing inside buildings on the 165-acre Stetson campus northeast of Orlando. With no commercial electrical power, power lines lying on the ground and limbs spread across roads, Stetson cancelled classes. But the question administrators were left with was how to communicate their decision to students and faculty and how to tell them when it was safe to return to campus.

They turned to e-mail and their Web site, which, despite the devastation throughout the area, remained functional for the entire nine days the campus was without power. Bill Penney, director of technology at Stetson, Florida's first private university, credited BellSouth(R) SMARTRing(R) Service for the school's ability to keep communications flowing.

"It made the job of the Emergency Management Team easier and saved us a tremendous headache," said Penney. "There was no power on campus, but we were able to send e-mail and to post pictures of the damage on the Web site so students and parents knew we weren't kidding when we said it was bad around here."

SMARTRing Service is a dedicated, high-capacity network designed to provide increased reliability and functionality among multiple sites. The backbone of SMARTRing (Self-healing, Multi-nodal Alternative Route Topology Ring) Service is its ability to heal itself based on its redundant architecture. SMARTRing Service can be described as two paths of fiber providing a protective moat around an area such as the Stetson campus. If a single fiber is cut, the signal will travel over the second fiber. If both fiber circuits are cut, the signal reverses and travels around the remaining arc of the loop.

SMARTRing Service also made life easier for government officials and residents of Seminole County in central Florida during the recent hurricanes and tropical storms. Seminole County added SMARTRing Service technology several years ago as its requirements for telecommunications services continued to grow.

"When BellSouth first came to us with this technology, we were looking for ways to accommodate future growth," said Greg Holcomb, information technology manager for Seminole County. "But one of our criteria was also making sure we could handle major catastrophic events. If we were shut down, we wanted to make sure we could quickly reroute and bring our connectivity up at another location."

Holcomb and other government officials may not have envisioned a series of events like the recent storms, but they are thankful they were prepared. As a result of the services in place, Seminole County experienced no outages.
"Business continuity plans that incorporate communication systems give customers piece of mind that they can effectively operate, even under stressful conditions," said Joan Kratz — vice president of marketing, BellSouth Business. "BellSouth's voice and data solutions, with proper planning, greatly reduce the impact of natural disasters on an organization's ability to communicate to customers, suppliers and partners."

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 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(R), residential and small business customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial up and high speed DSL Internet access, satellite television 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(R) and The Real Yellow Pages(R).

More information about BellSouth can be found at [ >>> ] .
Quelle: BellSouth Corporation

Chief Procurement Executive Tim Houghton wins Voice Award; Supplier Diversity Manager Beverly Wesley named Advocate of the Year

ATLANTA, Nov. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- BellSouth Corporation (NYSE:BLS) is honored to be selected as Corporation of the Year by the Georgia Women's Business Council. The presentation, made during the GWBC's annual awards luncheon, cited BellSouth for its leadership in providing business and developmental opportunities for woman-owned firms in Georgia.

Also at the event, BellSouth Chief Procurement Executive Tim Houghton was given the GWBC Voice Award and BellSouth Supplier Diversity Manager Beverly Wesley was named the GWBC's Advocate of the Year for their work in fostering and promoting relationships with woman-owned companies.
BellSouth believes that by fostering entrepreneurship in woman-and minority-owned firms, it helps build prosperous communities, which in turn, help build a stronger BellSouth.

"Everyone involved benefits when we expand our business with woman-and minority-owned firms," explained Phil Jacobs, president of BellSouth's Georgia operations. "Promoting entrepreneurship is a key avenue to greater prosperity for communities and businesses, through job creation, training and investment."

And BellSouth is consistently recognized in its region as a champion of supplier diversity. In 2004 alone, affiliate councils of the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) honored BellSouth and its employees with: Corporation of the Year in Florida, Alabama and Mississippi; Executive of the Year in Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi; and the prestigious Crystal Award in Georgia.

Nationally, BellSouth has been named for the past two years to DiversityBusiness.com's Div 50 listing of top corporations for promoting business opportunities for woman-and minority-owned firms. BellSouth also surpassed a five year milestone goal from the 1999 SUPERCOMM Supplier Diversity Challenge to place 10% of its total procurement spending with diversity suppliers.
For more information on supplier diversity at BellSouth, visit [ >>> ] .

GWBC is the official certification partner of the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) in the state of Georgia. Their mission is to enhance the competitive value of women-owned business enterprises (WBEs) through certification, education and corporate partnership opportunities. For more information on the GWBC, visit [ >>> ] .
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 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(R), residential and small business customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial up and high speed DSL Internet access, satellite television 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(R) and The Real Yellow Pages(R).
More information about BellSouth can be found at [ >>> ] .
Quelle: BellSouth Corporation

Multimedia Communication Solution Delivers Advanced Applications for Customer Voice and Data Networks

ATLANTA, /PRNewswire/ BellSouth is expanding its support of
voice and data convergence by providing advanced multimedia communications for
customers with the Multimedia Communication Server (MCS) 5100 from Nortel.
This new customer premises equipment solution complements voice and data
communications consolidation by delivering innovative collaboration and
productivity applications to the desktop.

«Customers are consolidating voice and data networks for added
efficiencies and capabilities, realized by new applications over secure,
reliable transport,» said Joan Kratz — vice president, BellSouth Business
Marketing. «This new solution supports applications that bring tangible value
to emerging technologies like voice over IP.»

Central Piedmont Community College, located in Charlotte, is the largest
community college in North Carolina, offering over 100 degree and
certification programs, customized corporate training, market-focused
continuing education, and special interest classes. The school is in the
process of migrating its voice and data network and was hesitant to invest
additional capital on its legacy voice equipment.

«BellSouth showed us how we could seamlessly integrate the Nortel MCS 5100
into our network, providing the support the school needs without demanding
significant re-investment in hardware. Our faculty and staff are more
productive and efficient by using the teleconference, collaboration, and
presence applications that it offers,» said Celese Ward — manager,
Instructional Technology Services, Central Piedmont Community College. «In
fact, our ultimate goal is to make these features available to the student
body, and to deploy the video applications as well.»

The customer premises equipment operates on a SIP-based platform (Session
Initiation Protocol -- the protocol used to enable next-generation
applications) and supports a comprehensive list of advanced multimedia
applications. Customized call management and advanced routing capabilities
allow greater mobility by providing users with anytime accessibility, from
almost any device. Enhanced collaboration is made possible through sharing
services such as file exchange, Web pushing and white boarding. With Meet-Me
Media Conferencing, Video Conferencing, and messaging capabilities like
Instant Messaging (IM), every call can be turned into a productive multi-party
work session. While the MCS 5100 supports the convergence of voice and data
networks, it can be deployed in a traditional, TDM (time division
multiplexing) environment as well, bringing the features, benefits and
applications associated with IP to customers not yet ready for full migration.

«By deploying the Nortel IP multimedia solution, BellSouth’s customers
will be able to collaborate in the manner best-suited for their circumstances,
whether via videoconferencing, voice, IM or text messaging across the most
convenient media for end-users -- with high reliability. Adherence to SIP-
based industry standards means this solution is designed to accommodate
current and future applications in a multi-vendor environment, which is
critical for enterprises seeking a hosted IP multimedia solution,» said
Malcolm Collins — president, Enterprise Networks, Nortel.

The Nortel Multimedia Communications Server 5100 delivers voice, call
management, desktop video calling, collaboration tools, video capabilities
with multi-point video conferencing, Instant Messaging capabilities and Web
application collaboration that allows applications and documents to be shared
in real time.

About BellSouth

BellSouth Corporation is a Fortune 100 communications company
headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia and a parent company of Cingular Wireless,
the nation’s 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(R), residential and small business
customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial up and
high speed DSL Internet access, satellite television 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(R) and The Real
Yellow Pages(R).

More information about BellSouth can be found
at [ >>> ] .

BellSouth Answers(R) Provides Customers with Convenience and Savings

ATLANTA, /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ As announced in its third
quarter 2004 earnings report, BellSouth (NYSE: BLS) has reached four million
BellSouth Answers(R) bundle customers. The company’s popular BellSouth
Answers(R) bundles combine local, long distance, Cingular wireless services, Internet and DIRECTV digital satellite television service in a bundled offering, providing greater flexibility and overall increased savings to consumers on their monthly communications and entertainment services.

«We are very pleased that four million customers look to BellSouth to
bundle their communications and entertainment services,» said Randy Kinkaid,
acting vice president of BellSouth Consumer Services Marketing. «This is
evidence that more and more customers are selecting BellSouth as the one
provider for all of their communications and entertainment needs. BellSouth
Answers bundles provide customers with the quality, flexibility and value they
demand from a comprehensive portfolio of communications and entertainment
services.»

BellSouth Answers(R) allows consumers to select the services they need
with combined savings of up to $500 a year, depending on the services
selected.(1) The bundle product allows customers to save up to $10 a month on
each of their wireless, Internet, and digital satellite-delivered television
service.

«In order to effectively compete in this competitive marketplace,
companies like BellSouth must answer customers’ demands for increased savings
and simplicity,» said Kate Griffin, senior analyst for the Yankee Group.
«Bundles provide greater savings along with the flexibility and convenience
customers want when selecting and bundling their communications and
entertainment services.»

BellSouth Answers(R) bundles are flexible enough to capture customers’
needs, from customers with a single phone line and one or more calling
features to those with more robust communications and entertainment solutions
needs. For example, a residential customer subscribing to the BellSouth(R)
Complete Choice(R) plan and the BellSouth(R) Unlimited long distance plan can add BellSouth(R) FastAccess(R) DSL and DIRECTV(R) service and save $10 a month on each qualifying service. With the following five categories of bundles, consumers will have greater choice and flexibility in selecting the products and services they need.

-- Value Answers(SM) bundle -- BellSouth’s award winning local service and
long distance for consumers requiring basic communication solutions

-- Wireless Answers(SM) bundle -- local, long distance and Cingular
wireless for consumers that need to stay connected at home and away

-- Internet Answers(SM) bundle -- local, long distance and Internet for
customers with broader communication needs

-- Digital TV Answers(SM) bundle -- local, long distance, and DIRECTV for
customers’ calling and entertainment needs.

-- Ultimate Answers(SM) bundle -- local, long distance, and at least two
additional services from either Internet, DIRECTV or wireless service
categories. Ultimate answers for customers that need one source for all
their communications needs.

With expanded BellSouth Answers(R) bundles, BellSouth residential
customers can select local, long distance, wireless, Internet and digital
satellite-delivered television service, as well as a number of other calling
features for their personalized plans.

BellSouth Answers(R) bundles vary in cost depending on the services
selected by the consumer with bundles starting as low as $25 per month for
local and long distance service, exclusive of taxes, per minute long distance
charges and other charges. Customers interested in signing up for an Answers
bundle can learn more or subscribe by calling 1–877-ANSWERS (267–9377) or by
visiting the BellSouth Web page at [ >>> ] . A dedicated
BellSouth representative can help customers customize the right services for
their family at the best possible price.

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 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(R), residential and small business
customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial up and
high speed DSL Internet access, satellite television 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(R) and The Real
Yellow Pages(R).

More information about BellSouth can be found at [ >>> ]

(1) Up to $500 savings requires subscription to BellSouth(R) Complete
Choice(R) plan, BellSouth(R) Unlimited Plan for long distance, BellSouth(R)
Dial Internet Service and qualifying Cingular(R) Wireless plan (350 anytime
minutes; 5,000 night and weekend minutes). Wireless and Internet services
available where facilities permit. Taxes, fees and other charges, including
Universal Service Fund, and other conditions and restrictions apply. Savings
compare Complete Choice plan vs. regional average price for local service and
five most popular features plus additional product savings. Pricing and
savings vary by state. Long distance services provided by BellSouth Long
Distance, Inc. Additional state mandated charges may apply on certain
specified routes.

ATLANTA, /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ BellSouth Corporation (NYSE: BLS — News) announced today it is offering $2 billion aggregate principal amount of three-year floating rate, and eight and 30-year fixed rate senior notes to be issued pursuant to the company’s shelf registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Proceeds from the sale of the notes will complete the long-term debt that BellSouth expects to raise to refinance its portion of the purchase price for Cingular’s acquisition of AT&T Wireless. JP Morgan, Lehman Brothers, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs will be acting as Bookrunners.

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 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®, residential and small business customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial up and high speed DSL Internet access, satellite television and Cingular® 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® RealPages.com® and The Real Yellow Pages®.

In addition to historical information, this document may contain forward- looking statements regarding events and financial trends. Factors that could affect future results and could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements include: (i) a change in economic conditions in domestic or international markets where we operate or have material investments which would affect demand for our services; (ii) the intensity of competitive activity and its resulting impact on pricing strategies and new product offerings; (iii) higher than anticipated cash requirements for investments, new business initiatives and acquisitions; (iv) unfavorable regulatory actions; (v) currency devaluations and continued economic weakness in certain international markets in which we operate or have material investments; and (vi) those factors contained in the Company’s periodic reports filed with the SEC. The forward-looking information in this document is given as of this date only, and, BellSouth assumes no duty to update this information.

More information about BellSouth can be found at [ >>> ]

YellowPages.com(SM) brand is recognized as a standard of the industry

SAN ANTONIO and ATLANTA, Nov. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- A newly formed Internet yellow pages joint venture between the directory affiliates of SBC Communications Inc. (NYSE: SBC — News) and BellSouth Corp. (NYSE: BLS — News) has closed the transaction announced yesterday to acquire online directory publisher www.yellowpages.com, Inc. The new venture will utilize the highly recognized YellowPages.com brand and expects to become the market leader in Internet yellow pages and local Internet search.

The creation of this venture and acquisition of YellowPages.com now positions the two directory publishing companies of SBC and BellSouth to better serve their local Internet search customers and lays the foundation for what they expect to be a leading provider of nationwide, online yellow pages and Internet local search. Through this combination, the YellowPages.com site expects to receive more than 50 million consumer searches per month.

YellowPages.com has the most recognized web address in the industry. The joint venture will use the companies’ deep local content and strong consumer usage to create a technology-focused venture that will bring greater value to advertisers and users by delivering more robust, comprehensive content.

The new venture will be headquartered in Pasadena, Calif., with operations in Henderson, Nev., and it will draw on the technology, management, sales forces and customer care capabilities of all three companies.

Charles Stubbs, an executive with BellSouth’s online yellow pages operation, has been named president and chief executive officer. Bill Clenney, an executive with SBC’s online yellow pages business, has been named chief financial officer. Debbie Slavin, also an SBC online yellow pages executive, was named senior vice president — Operations.

SBC Directory Operations and BellSouth Advertising and Publishing will continue to manage their local online yellow page relationships in their respective regions, outside the new venture, while the new venture will develop a sales force for national advertising accounts.

Cautionary Language Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

Information set forth in this news release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially. A discussion of factors that may affect future results is contained in SBC’s and BellSouth’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. SBC and BellSouth disclaim any obligation to update or revise statements contained in this news release based on new information or otherwise.

SBC Communications Inc. is a Fortune 50 company whose subsidiaries, operating under the SBC brand, provide a full range of voice, data, networking, e-business, directory publishing and advertising, and related services to businesses, consumers and other telecommunications providers. SBC holds a 60 percent ownership interest in Cingular Wireless, which serves more than 46 million wireless customers. SBC companies provide high-speed DSL Internet access lines to more American consumers than any other provider and are among the nation’s leading providers of Internet services. SBC companies also now offer satellite TV service. Additional information about SBC and SBC products and services is available at [ >>> ] .

BellSouth Corporation is a Fortune 100 communications company headquartered in Atlanta, GA, and a parent company of Cingular Wireless, the nation’s 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®, residential and small business customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial up and high speed DSL Internet access, satellite television and Cingular® 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® RealPages.com® and The Real Yellow Pages®. More information about BellSouth can be found at [ >>> ] .

RealPages.com® from BellSouth (NYSE: BLS) the Southeast’s leading online yellow pages and Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG), developer of the award-winning Google® search engine, today announced an agreement whereby RealPages.com will become the first yellow pages publisher authorized to sell advertising through Google AdWords® to small and medium-sized local businesses.

Under the multi-year agreement, BellSouth will include Google AdWords as an integral part of its RealSearch offering, a patent-pending search engine marketing service designed for small and medium-sized local businesses. By aligning with the BellSouth salesforce, Google can now reach more small and medium-sized local businesses in the Southeast with Google AdWords. With AdWords, Google’s performance-based search advertising program, advertisers present marketing messages to potential customers at the precise moment they are looking for information related to the products and services the advertiser offers. Google AdWords enables select RealSearch customers to generate leads across the Google Network, which reaches more than 80 percent of U. S. Internet users through sites such as Google.com, AOL, BellSouth.Net, and Earthlink among others (source: MediaMetrix, September 2004).

«Helping our advertisers grow their businesses is at the core of The Real Yellow Pages and RealPages.com’s success,» said Elmer Smith, president of BellSouth Advertising & Publishing. «We believe this partnership will allow RealSearch customers to take advantage of the extensive reach of the Google Network, which will aid them in attracting more and more customers.»

«Our relationship with BellSouth enables Google to leverage an established, market-leading salesforce to reach small and medium-sized local businesses across the Southeast,» said Sukhinder Singh, general manager of Google Local and Third Party Sales. «Google is excited to add a new way to reach prospective advertisers, while continuing to provide users with relevant local information and advertisements.»

Google currently provides advertisers with the ability to reach customers in local markets through a variety of AdWords targeting options including regional and city level, as well as through an address-based radius feature or by specifying latitude and longitude points.

With RealSearch Engine Solutions from BellSouth, advertisers reach potential customers when consumers are actively looking for information about products and services online. BellSouth offers a full-service solution that sends a guaranteed number of targeted visitors from search engines directly to a customer’s website.

Smith said by managing the local search solution for advertisers, BellSouth is saving its customers time and money and allowing them to benefit from search engine marketing while maintaining focus on their day-to-day business operations.

«The phenomenal growth of local search, combined with BellSouth’s one-of-a-kind RealSearch product incorporating Google’s AdWords, positions BellSouth as a primary partner for our online advertisers,» Smith said.

According to The Kelsey Group, provider of strategic research, analysis, data and competitive metrics on yellow pages, electronic directories and local media, the local paid search advertising market generated $45 million in 2003 and is expected to reach as high as $2.5 billion by 2008 in advertising revenue.

Businesses interested in more information on RealSearch Engine Solutions from BellSouth can visit www.advertising.realpages.com.

The agreement is the expansion of an alliance that was announced earlier this year. In April, the two companies announced an agreement whereby Google’s search results and targeted advertisements were made available through BellSouth’s Internet services home page www.bellsouth.net for Internet customers.

About BellSouth Advertising and Publishing
BellSouth Advertising & Publishing Corporation (BAPCO) is the leading provider of print and Internet Yellow Pages products in the southeast. BAPCO and LM Berry Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of BellSouth, publishes 63 million copies of the print Yellow Pages in more than 500 editions in the nine-state BellSouth region. Users referred to The Real Yellow Pages® from BellSouth nearly 2 billion times last year and made nearly 160 million searches on RealPages.com® (www.realpages.com). The Real Yellow Pages is a powerful information resource, linking buyers and sellers, with approximately 85 percent of consumers who reference the directories’ most frequently used headings making a purchase based on their findings.

About BellSouth Corporation
BellSouth Corporation is a Fortune 100 communications services company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. BellSouth serves nearly 50 million local, long distance, Internet and wireless customers in the United States and 12 other countries.

Consistently recognized for customer satisfaction, BellSouth provides complete communications solutions to the residential and business markets. In the residential market, BellSouth offers DSL high-speed Internet access and long distance, advanced voice features and other services. The company’s BellSouth Answers package combines local and long distance service with an array of calling features; wireless data, voice and e-mail services; and high-speed DSL or dial-up Internet service and Cingular Wireless. In the business market, BellSouth serves small, medium and large businesses providing secure, reliable local and long distance voice and data networking solutions. BellSouth also provides online and directory advertising services through RealPages.com® and The Real Yellow Pages from BellSouth®. BellSouth owns 40 percent of Cingular Wireless, the nation’s second largest wireless company, which provides innovative wireless voice and data services.

About Google Inc.
Google’s innovative search technologies connect millions of people around the world with information every day. Founded in 1998 by Stanford Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google today is a top web property in all major global markets. Google’s targeted advertising program, which is the largest and fastest growing in the industry, provides businesses of all sizes with measurable results, while enhancing the overall web experience for users. Google is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. For more information, visit www.google.com

It’s the perfect time of year for customers to replace their cable with DIRECTV(R) service

ATLANTA, /PRNewswire/ BellSouth (NYSE: BLS — News) announced today that residential customers who sign up for new DIRECTV® service from BellSouth and subscribe to HBO® and Cinemax® with a one-year commitment to any qualifying programming package between Oct. 31, 2004 and Feb. 28, 2005, will receive three free months of HBO® and Cinemax®. (1)

Customers will receive seven channels of HBO®, which brings viewers original programming and hits such as The Sopranos®, Carnivale® and Six Feet Under®, feature movies like «Master & Commander: The Far Side Of The World» and «Mystic River» and sporting events including World Championship Boxing. Movie-lovers can turn to Cinemax® for first-run theatrical and exclusive Hollywood premieres and the largest variety of top box office releases, like «Matrix Revolutions» and «Big Fish». Together, these channels provide big screen entertainment your entire family will enjoy. In the fourth month, customers’ HBO® and Cinemax® subscriptions will automatically roll to payable monthly charges.

«The addition of DIRECTV service to our portfolio has placed BellSouth in the unique position of being able to bundle communications and entertainment services with the ultimate goal of saving customers time and money,» said Jim Rozier, senior director of BellSouth Video Services. «For customers who have been waiting for the right time to sign up for DIRECTV service from BellSouth, the time has arrived.»

Through Jan. 9, 2004, new residential DIRECTV customers who purchase a DIRECTV® DVR for a one-time payment of $99 and sign up for DIRECTV® DVR with TiVo® service for only $4.99 per month will receive a $50 rebate coupon in their first month’s DIRECTV bill. The monthly service fee is waived for TOTAL CHOICE® PREMIER customers. With DIRECTV® DVR with TiVo®, customers can enjoy all of the benefits of DVR service such as pausing live TV and recording up to 35 hours of their favorite programming. (Actual recording capacity depends on type of programming being recorded.) With the DIRECTV DVR service, subscribers watch TV how they want to and on their own schedule.

Depending on BellSouth Answers bundle eligibility, customers can save up to an additional $10 off their bundle of services when they add DIRECTV service to their BellSouth Answers package. BellSouth customers are able to get all DIRECTV programming packages that are available to any DIRECTV customer within a given service area. For more information or to order DIRECTV from BellSouth, visit www.bellsouth.com/consumer/directv or call 1–877–267–9377.

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®, residential and small business customers can bundle their local and long distance service with dial up and high speed DSL Internet access, satellite television and Cingular® 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® RealPages.com® and The Real Yellow Pages®.

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

About DIRECTV

DIRECTV is the nation’s leading digital multichannel television service provider with more than 13 million customers. DIRECTV, the Cyclone Design logo and TOTAL CHOICE are registered trademarks of DIRECTV, Inc., a unit of The DIRECTV Group, Inc. (NYSE: DTV — News). The DIRECTV Group is a world-leading provider of digital multichannel television entertainment and broadband satellite networks and services. The DIRECTV Group is 34 percent owned by Fox Entertainment Group, which is approximately 82 percent owned by News Corporation Ltd.

(1) ACTIVATION OF PROGRAMMING MAY BE SUBJECT TO CREDIT APPROVAL AND REQUIRES VALID SERVICE ADDRESS, SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER AND/OR MAJOR CREDIT CARD. DEPOSIT/PREPAYMENT MAY BE REQUIRED. Offers available to new residential customers between 10/31/04 and 2/28/05 who subscribe to 12 consecutive months of any DIRECTV TOTAL CHOICE programming package ($36.99/mo. or above), DIRECTV PARA TODOS programming package ($26.99/mo. or above) or qualifying international services bundle, plus activate HBO® and Cinemax® within 30 days of equipment purchase. In the fourth month, customer’s HBO® and Cinemax® services will roll to the regular payable monthly charges ($12/mo. or less, each). The DIRECTV System has a feature which allows restricted access to or blocking of entire channels. FAILURE TO ACTIVATE THE DIRECTV SYSTEM WITHIN 30 DAYS OF PURCHASE MAY RESULT IN. A. CHARGE OF $150.00 U. S. DOLLARS PER DIRECTV RECEIVER NOT ACTIVATED. IF YOU FAIL TO MAINTAIN AN ANNUAL PROGRAMMING COMMITMENT, DIRECTV MAY CHARGE. A. PRORATED FEE OF UP TO $150.00. IN LIEU OF PAYMENT, YOU HAVE AN OPTION TO SEND YOUR DIRECTV SYSTEM EQUIPMENT TO DIRECTV. VISIT DIRECTV.COM OR CALL 1–800-DIRECTV FOR DETAILS. Programming, pricing, terms and conditions subject to change. Taxes not included. Equipment specifications and programming options may vary in AK or HI. DIRECTV services not provided outside the U. S. Receipt of DIRECTV programming is subject to the terms of the DIRECTV Customer Agreement; a copy is provided at DIRECTV.com and in your first bill. HBO® and Cinemax® are registered service marks of Home Box Office, Inc. DIRECTV and the Cyclone Design logo, TOTAL CHOICE and DIRECTV PARA TODOS are registered trademarks of DIRECTV, Inc. All BellSouth marks contained herein are owned by BellSouth Intellectual Property Corporation.