U S WEST's Lawsuits Against Long-Distance Resellers and Telemarketers Result in Permanent Injunction - Company Business and Marketing

Cambridge Telcom Report, May 1, 2000

U S WEST Thursday announced it has settled four of six lawsuits it has filed to protect consumers against companies who are involved in deceptive telemarketing practices and 'slamming' -- the act of switching a customer's long-distance provider without the customer's consent.

U S WEST filed suit against Inmark, Inc. dba as Preferred Billing, Inc., Vista Group International, Inc. and Least Cost Routing, Inc. in Federal District Court in Denver, Colorado after receiving customer complaints about 'slamming' and deceptive telemarketing practices. U S WEST also sued Universal Power Marketing, a telemarketing company, for its use of U S WEST's name in marketing long-distance services for other companies.

The companies agreed to settle the lawsuits and enter into permanent injunctions against the practices, while continuing to deny the allegations. The injunctions prohibit the companies and their telemarketers from 'slamming' customers and from using U S WEST's name in a manner that might confuse consumers or imply that there is a connection between any of those companies and U S WEST.

"This is a win for our customers," said Betsy Bernard, executive vice president, Retail Markets, U S WEST. "Long-distance slamming plagues hundreds of thousands of Americans every year -- and that's by conservative estimates. It has to stop. U S WEST will continue to take whatever steps are necessary to combat 'slamming' and deceptive telemarketing practices."

In its annual Telephone Consumer Complaint Scorecard, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has identified slamming as the number one complaint Americans have about their phone service. The FCC receives nearly as many complaints about slamming as it does about all other service issues combined.

Last year, U S WEST helped more than 400,000 customers in its 14-state region who reported being slammed.

U S WEST has actively campaigned for a number of anti-slamming initiatives in recent years and has been a vocal advocate of fines and other penalties to crack down against companies guilty of repeated slamming. U S WEST provides tips on its web site to help customers avoid being slammed. They are available at www.uswest.com/home/cs/faq/slamming .

U S WEST (NYSE: USW) is a leading broadband and communications service provider, with more than $13 billion in annual revenues. U S WEST leads the industry in deploying next-generation broadband ADSL and VDSL Internet access and data/video services; offers the nation's first and only 'one-number' advanced wireless service that integrates customers' home or business phones with their wireless PCS; and provides multimedia advertising services, including Internet and print directories. The company has nearly 2 million miles of deployed fiber in the U.S., provides local exchange services to more than 25 million customers in 14 states, and provides wireless services to more than 500,000 customers and data services to more than 800,000 customers nationally.

U S WEST is merging with Qwest Communications International Inc. The combination, to be named Qwest Communications International Inc., will create a communications powerhouse with a market capitalization of more than $70 billion, headquartered in Denver and employing about 64,000 people worldwide. U S WEST and Qwest will unite the nation's most innovative local, wireless and broadband communications firm with one of the world's most advanced fiber-optic networks and broadband Internet providers. Together, the two firms will have more than 3 million miles of deployed fiber in the U.S. and worldwide, 29 million customers and a local network that is 99.2 percent digitally switched. For more information about U S WEST, go to http://www.uswest.com.