BELLSOUTH CORPORATION
UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
SCHEDULE 14A
PROXY STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 14(a) OF THE SECURITIES
EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 (AMENDMENT NO. )
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BELLSOUTH CORPORATION
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**This
document has previously been filed but the cover page was
inadvertently omitted. The text of the filing is unchanged.**
FINAL FOR NEWSSOURCE June 22, 2006
Consumers will gain big benefits from merger, chairmen say
In a joint appearance before a congressional subcommittee today, BellSouth Chairman and CEO
Duane Ackerman and AT&T Chairman and CEO Ed Whitacre pinpointed specific benefits for consumers
from the pending merger of the two companies.
In a word, the benefits they described are: big.
Ackerman and Whitacre addressed the subject of the pending mergers meaning for consumers before
the Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights. The panel, under the Senate
Judiciary Committee, has oversight of antitrust enforcement and competition policies of the
Department of Justice and other agencies. DOJ approval is required for the BellSouth-AT&T merger to
close.
Heres a summary of the pending mergers consumer benefits that Whitacre and Ackerman cited to
subcommittee members:
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Wireless and wireline services will blend seamlessly over an advanced, integrated
network. |
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Cingular will be more agile, more effective and better able to bring new
innovations to market faster. |
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IPTV will deploy more quickly and provide a compelling, competitive alternative to
cable TV service, creating better pricing and programming. |
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Better disaster recovery and response. Ackerman noted that AT&Ts vast capabilities
to aid recovery for government and large business customers will combine with
BellSouths experience in responding to hurricanes. Combined, the companies can restore
critical communications capabilities quicker and coordinate with key government agencies
more effectively, he said. |
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AT&Ts state-of-the-art national and international networks, combined with
BellSouths local exchange and broadband platforms, will enhance offerings and services
for business customers. |
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Innovations will reach the marketplace faster and prove highly responsive to
customers needs. Whitacre gave some examples, including: |
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Voice Signature, a new concept from AT&T Labs that could offer online
merchants and shoppers more protection when using credit cards. The service would
allow consumers to register the sound of their voices, providing another form of
identification to help fight credit-card fraud. |
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Satellite-based broadband service for residential and rural
territories that generally are not served by landline broadband service. |
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Cost efficiencies amounting to an estimated $18 billion after the merger will
enable the new company to be an even more effective competitor with cable in the new
century, Ackerman said. |
These benefits will come, Ackerman noted, without loss of mass market competition. BellSouth
concentrates its efforts on customers whose service needs are predominately
in our nine-state region, while AT&T concentrates on business customers with a more national and
global reach, he said.
Overall, the merger will create a flagship American communications company, prepared to lead the
way for this industry at home and abroad, Whitacre said.
NOTE: In connection with the proposed merger, AT&T Inc. (AT&T) filed a registration statement
on Form S-4 (Registration No. 333-132904), containing a joint proxy statement/prospectus of AT&T
and BellSouth Corporation (BellSouth), with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) on
June 2, 2006. Investors are urged to read the registration statement and the joint proxy
statement/prospectus contained therein (including all amendments and supplements to it) because it
contains important information. Investors may obtain free copies of the registration statement and
joint proxy statement/prospectus, as well as other filings containing information about AT&T and
BellSouth, without charge, at the SECs Web site (www.sec.gov). Copies of AT&Ts filings may also
be obtained without charge from AT&T at AT&Ts Web site (www.att.com) or by directing a request
to AT&T Inc. Stockholder Services, 175 E. Houston, San Antonio, Texas 78205. Copies of BellSouths
filings may be obtained without charge from BellSouth at BellSouths Web site (www.bellsouth.com)
or by directing a request to BellSouth at Investor Relations, 1155 Peachtree Street, N.E., Atlanta,
Georgia 30309.
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