PacBell, MCI Agree to Join Local Networks

Pacific Bell and MCI Communications Corp. said Monday that they agreed to connect their local phone networks in California, the first such agreement between Pacific Bell and one of the three major long-distance companies.

The agreement will allow MCI to begin offering local phone service as soon as state regulators review and approve the pact, said Lee Bauman, Pacific Bell vice president for local competition. That could happen as soon as July 17, he said.

“We’re complying with the orders of the [California Public Utilities Commission] and moving forward with opening local markets,” Bauman said.

Pacific Bell and other Baby Bells must prove they face competition to be allowed into the nation’s $70-billion long-distance market, under the federal telecommunications reforms passed in February.