Qwest to Offer 7.5-Cent Phone Rate

Breaking the telephone industry’s equivalent of the four-minute mile, a local communications company said Monday that it has shattered the dime-a-minute long-distance barrier.

Using Internet technology, Denver-based Qwest Communications International Inc. plans to offer customers in selected cities long-distance service for 7.5 cents a minute, 24 hours a day with no restrictions.

“This is about new technology and new capabilities,” Qwest Chief Executive Joe Nacchio said.

Beating the dime rate will require some dialing. Qwest customers will have to call a local number, enter a four-digit code, then dial the desired area code and phone number.

Qwest’s initial plan doesn’t figure to threaten telecom’s Big Three, Sprint Corp., AT&T; Corp. and MCI Communications Corp. It calls for residential and small-business service in Los Angeles, Anaheim, Sacramento, San Jose, Oakland, San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Denver and Kansas City, Kan., by the end of January.

Nacchio said Qwest’s 7.5-cent rate is possible because the company’s high-capacity fiber-optic network uses Internet technology that is more cost-efficient than the traditional networks used by long-distance heavyweights.

“It requires behavior modification, and we’ve found people are resistant to behavior modification,” said Sprint spokesman Russ Robinson.

Shares of Qwest rose 44 cents to close at $59.50 on Nasdaq.

Nacchio played down the 21-digit finger workout, saying he does not expect it to deter the bargain-hunting phone customer.