AT&T; Has 5-Cents-a-Minute Plan of Its Own

AT&T; Corp. has begun offering select phone customers its own version of a 5-cents-a-minute long-distance calling plan to match similar plans at Sprint and MCI WorldCom. But the AT&T; plan is not advertised, not widely available, and will pay off for only high-volume callers because of higher monthly fees. The nation’s largest long-distance carrier said details vary by customer, but the plan includes a 24-hour long-distance rate of 5 cents a minute, with a set monthly fee of between $8.95 and $9.95. In some cases, the company offers customers a one-time block of 100 free minutes as an incentive to rejoin AT&T;, the company said. An AT&T; spokesman said the 5-cent plan is offered only on a case-by-case basis, and that its “flagship offer” remains AT&T;’s One Rate 7 Cents plan, which costs $5.95 a month and includes an all-day rate of 7 cents a minute.