"Just Say Yes"; Pacific Bell Expands Express Call Completion Service For 4-1-1 Directory Assistance Calls In Northern, Central California.

SACRAMENTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 25, 1996--More than 1 million consumers and businesses in 18 Northern and Central California counties can `let their fingers do the talking' -- or simply say `yes' -- to use the newly expanded Pacific Bell Directory Assistance Express Call Completion service, which automatically connects calls to 4-1-1 to the requested phone number.

The service is now being offered in all or portions of Sacramento, Yolo, El Dorado, Placer, Sutter, Solano and Nevada counties. When customers in those areas call 4-1-1 for directory assistance, they will hear a recorded voice announcement offering automatic call connection following receipt of their requested number.

Among the communities where the service is now available are downtown Sacramento, Fair Oaks, Orangevale, Rancho Cordova, Folsom and Rio Linda in Sacramento County; West Sacramento, Davis and Woodland in Yolo County; Lincoln, Loomis, Newcastle, Dutch Flat, Auburn, Truckee, Soda Springs, Tahoe City and Brockway in Placer County; South Lake Tahoe, Meyers, Shingle Springs, Diamond Springs, Camino, Pollock Pines, Kyburz and Placerville in El Dorado County; Yuba City, Live Oak, Meridian and North Yuba in Sutter County; Smartsville and Wheatland in Yuba County; Dixon in Solano County and Nevada City and Grass Valley in Nevada County.

To use the service, callers need to press 1 on their telephone keypad or say `yes' in response to a recorded voice prompt. With recent improvements in voice recognition technology, customers with rotary dial phones also can use the service by responding to a recorded voice prompt. The service costs 35 cents per call completion, but there is no charge for uncompleted calls because of a busy line or no answer.

"We're offering this service as an added convenience for our customers," said Rick Bradley, vice president and general manager of Pacific Bell Operator Services. "We know some customers may be in a hurry, have their hands full or standing at a pay phone when calling directory assistance. Having the ability to automatically connect your call will undoubtedly be helpful to people in a variety of situations, not the least of which are those who don't have a pen and paper handy to write the number down."

Bradley said customers can bill the 35 cent charge to their home phone, a calling card, a third number, make it collect or use coins if they're calling from a pay phone. The service blocks all calls to 900 and 976 pay-per-call programs.

The next expansion phase for the service is scheduled for October in the San Joaquin Valley, where parts of Modesto, Fresno and Stockton will be added as well as all of Lodi, Tracy and Escalon in San Joaquin County; Riverbank, Turlock and Oakdale in Stanislaus County; San Andreas, Mokelumne Hill, Arnold, Murphys, Angels Camp, Bear Valley and Valley Springs in Calaveras County; Sutter Creek, Plymouth, Jackson and Ione in Amador County; La Grange, Groveland, Sonora, Twain Harte, Pinecrest and Jamestown in Tuolumne County; Coulterville in Mariposa County; Caruthers, Selma, Riverdale, Kingsburg, Parlier, Orange Cove, Del Rey and Laton in Fresno County; Avenal, Lemoore and Hanford in Kings County; Los Banos, Gustine, Newman, Atwater and Merced in Merced County; Goshen, Orosi, Porterville, Tulare, Visalia and Dinuba in Tulare County and Madera in Madera County.

The service, which first became available in parts of Alameda and Contra Costa counties in 1990, is expected to be very successful and a customer favorite because of the convenience factor and the busy California lifestyle, Bradley said. "In the Bay Area, the service is one of the most popular we have -- rivaling some of our more established custom calling features that have been around for years."

Bradley said he expects use of the service to grow rapidly because 5,000 Pacific Bell Directory Assistance operators handle several million 4-1-1 calls each day, although specific projections are not being disclosed for competitive reasons. "While we can't divulge exact numbers, we expect the service to mirror the nationwide industry average, which is up to 20 percent," he said.

The service, which connects calls placed and completed within the same service area, will continue to be deployed in other parts of the state as equipment is upgraded and new software features are added to company call processing centers.

Pacific Bell is a subsidiary of Pacific Telesis Group, a San Francisco-based diversified telecommunications corporation.

CONTACT: Dave Miller, 916/972-2811

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