FEATURE/BellSouth bridges communications gap for Paralympic athletes; telecommunications center for customers with disabilities provides a myriad of special services.

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE FEATURES)--Aug. 28, 1996--In the past, the spirit of competition often turned to frustration for athletes of the Paralympic Games and others with disabilities trying to communicate in today's high-tech age. Fortunately, telecommunications technology has undergone a much needed metamorphosis since the first Paralympic Games were held in Rome in 1960.

As an official sponsor of the 1996 Paralympic Games, BellSouth helped level the communications playing field by providing the Atlanta Paralympic Organizing Committee (APOC) with 30 text telephones, 30 head sets and 30 large button telephones, as well as local telecommunications, mobile data, cellular and paging services valued at approximately $4 million.

Telecommunications equipment for people with disabilities was all but non-existent when the first Paralympic Games were held 36 years ago. At that time, the only products available were volume-control handsets which actually were not designed specifically for hearing impaired customers, rather for employees working in loud environments.

"The Paralympic Games is a special opportunity for BellSouth to demonstrate to the world's hearing impaired, athletes and visitors, our advanced special telecommunications products and services," said BellSouth chairman and CEO John Clendenin. "Telecommunications technology for the disabled has come a long way and we hope to use events such as this one as a spring board for even more developments."

Not until 1963 was the first significant innovation made in the field of telecommunications specifically for persons with disabilities. Physicist Dr. Robert H. Weitbrecht, who himself suffered significant hearing loss, developed an acoustic coupler that deciphered signals carried from telephone lines and transferred them into text. His invention laid the foundation for the first text telephone (TT). The device was approximately the size of an office desk. But, for the first time, a deaf individual could communicate by use of the telephone.

Weitbrecht's invention spawned a series of other unique telecommunications products developed for the disabled. By the late 1960s, several products emerged on the market, including operator headsets, visual ring signalers, artificial larynxes and large dial plates for telephones.

For years BellSouth has provided special products to persons with disabilities. However, until 1984, products and services were provided randomly on an as-needed basis. In 1984, BellSouth was granted a tariff to provide specialized equipment to persons with disabilities. That same year, the company pulled together all facets of its special services to create one specialized area of expertise. A service headquarters for persons with disabilities was created with the Telecommunications Center for Customers with Disabilities (TCCD).

Through the TCCD, BellSouth currently provides individuals with disabilities a unique opportunity to voice their opinions on products and services so future needs for services and products can better be met. BellSouth service representatives contact the disabled daily through forums, telephone polls and normal calls coming into the center from the disabled daily.

"Who better to tell us what products should be on the market than the very people who need them and will be using them," said Ron Talley, specialist for BellSouth's TCCD. Service representatives at the TCCD also undergo various special training to work with disabled persons such as sensitivity training, learning about specific disabilities, and training on communication skills when dealing with the disabled.

Currently BellSouth offers products and services to more than 100,000 persons with disabilities. Available to consumers is "Access," a brochure containing complete information on BellSouth's products and services. A free copy of "Access" can be obtained by calling 205/321-2892.

BellSouth is a $17.9 billion communications services company providing telecommunications, wireless, directory advertising and publishing and information services to 25 million customers throughout the United States and 17 other countries.

CONTACT: BellSouth Corp.

Bill Carver, 404/249-3961

or

GCI/Atlanta

Dan Boon, 404/870-3843