MPOWER COMMUNICATIONS PRAISES SUPREME COURT DECISION ON NETWORK PRICING AND BUNDLING COMPANY VIEWS COURT ACTION AS ELIMINATING RISK AND UNCERTAINTY
ROCHESTER, NY — May 15, 2002— Mpower Communications Corp., (AMEX:MPE), a provider of broadband high-speed Internet access and telephone services to business customers, praised Monday's decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to uphold the network pricing and combination rules established under the Telecommunications Act of 1996.
Essentially, this decision provides competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs) such as Mpower access to the incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECs) network elements at more favorable rates, and gives carriers like Mpower access to the incumbent's network elements necessary to cost-effectively deploy a local telephone network.
"This decision eliminates a large amount of the perceived risk and regulatory uncertainty associated with our business and the entire CLEC sector," commented Mpower Communications Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Gregg Clevenger.
Mpower was one of the first CLECs formed under the framework of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which mandated that ILECs would lease portions of its network to CLECs at reasonable rates.
"The court's action reinforces the way we built our business more than five years ago, and is equally important to our future and the future of all CLECs," added Clevenger. "We now have price protection on much of our network costs and we believe the groundwork has been laid for even more favorable network pricing going forward. We hope the FCC will not give in to pressure by the incumbent carriers to eviscerate a well thought out, long overdue judicial shot in the arm for competition that will be a boon to consumers and fortifies the longevity of CLECs as a viable sector in the telecommunication business."
About Mpower Communications
Mpower Communications (AMEX:MPE) is a facilities-based broadband communications provider offering a full range of data, telephony, Internet access and Web hosting services for small and medium-size business customers. Further information about the company can be found at www.mpowercom.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Under the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Mpower Holding Corporation cautions investors that certain statements contained in this press release that state management's intentions, hopes, beliefs, expectations or predictions of the future are forward-looking statements. Management wishes to caution the reader these forward-looking statements are not historical facts and are only estimates or predictions. Actual results may differ materially from those projected as a result of risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, receipt of the requisite support pursuant to federal bankruptcy laws for the proposed recapitalization plan from those entitled to vote on the proposed recapitalization plan, meeting the requirements of the federal bankruptcy code for confirmation of the proposed recapitalization plan, judicial approval of the proposed recapitalization plan in accordance with all relevant bankruptcy laws, projections of future sales, market acceptance of our product offerings, our ability to secure adequate financing or equity capital to fund our operations, network expansion and proposed recapitalization plan, our ability to reduce our outstanding indebtedness, our ability to manage rapid growth and maintain a high level of customer service, the performance of our network and equipment, the cooperation of incumbent local exchange carriers in provisioning lines and interconnecting our equipment, regulatory approval processes, changes in technology, price competition and other market conditions and risks detailed from time to time in Mpower's Securities and Exchange Commission filings.
