AirTouch Venture Awarded Cellular License Covering 70 Million People in India.

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 18, 1995--Increasing its holdings in India's newly emerging cellular industry, AirTouch Communications (NYSE: ATI) has successfully bid for a cellular license in Madhya Pradesh, the largest state in India. AirTouch owns 49 percent of the venture, which is licensed to serve about 70 million people.

AirTouch and its partner, RPG Enterprises, will pay a total of $16 million over 10 years for their license. The new company will operate under the name Cellular Communication India, Ltd., and expects to start service during the third quarter of 1996. The cellular network will use GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) digital technology.

"This license offers a rare opportunity to enter an emerging wireless market on very favorable terms," said Arun Sarin, president and chief executive officer of AirTouch International. "We've already shown our confidence in India and RPG by forming a cellular partnership in Madras, the nation's fourth largest city. We plan to move quickly in Madhya Pradesh, as we've done in Madras, to offer high-quality wireless service to our customers."

Sarin added that there is vast potential for growth in India, because cellular service was just introduced there this year.

The Indian Department of Telecommunications awarded cellular licenses for 20 "Telecom Circles" in India, two licenses per circle. AirTouch received one of the two licenses awarded in Madhya Pradesh, in the center of India. The region's major cities include Bhopal, Indore, Jabalpur, and Gwallor. In addition to local cellular service, the new company will provide wireless long-distance service within Madhya Pradesh, a region of about 440,000 square kilometers.

AirTouch owns a 20 percent interest in another company, known as RPG Cellular Services, which inaugurated service in Madras in September, becoming one of India's first cellular operators.

With the addition of Madhya Pradesh, AirTouch now has a total of 141 million cellular POPs (the population of a market multiplied by the company's ownership interest), of which nearly 75 percent (103 million) are outside the United States.

AirTouch's partner, RPG Enterprises, is one of the five largest business houses in India, with revenues of $1 billion. The company consists of 19 business units involved primarily in information technologies and communications; power generation and distribution; and rubber and allied products.

AirTouch Communications is a global wireless communications company, with interests in cellular, paging, personal communications services, the Globalstar satellite system, and other operations in the United States and 12 other nations: Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Portugal, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, and Thailand. The company, based in San Francisco, serves over 4.5 million customers worldwide.

CONTACT: AirTouch Communications

Susan Rosenberg, 510/210-3910