The first step in allowing competition for...

The first step in allowing competition for local phone service in California was taken by the California Public Utilities Commission. It invited the nation’s three largest long-distance carriers and three other firms to compete with Pacific Bell and GTE California in providing high-speed transmission of data within the state--a service generally used by agencies and business with more than 500 employees and scattered locations, primarily to ship data between computers. The new competitors: AT&T;, MCI, U S Sprint, Cable & Wireless Management Services, Bay Area Teleport and Wang Communications Inc.