NEWS                                                        January 2, 1997



                 STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN HUNDT REGARDING  
                 AMERITECH'S FILING TO PROVIDE IN-REGION
                    LONG DISTANCE SERVICES IN MICHIGAN

Ameritech's filing for in-region long distance entry opens a new chapter in
the implementation of the Telecommunications Act of 1996.  The law places
on the Bell company in each state the burden of proving that it has met the
law's requirements for entering the long distance market in that state.  The
more than 4,000 pages of confidential and non-confidential information in
Ameritech's initial filing for Michigan reveal the importance and difficulty
of the issues.  These entry applications are highly concentrated litigations
and they will press our thin resources very hard.  But we guarantee a fair
decision on Ameritech's application -- approval or disapproval, with or
without conditions -- within the 90-day period set by Congress.  To meet
this deadline and assure fairness to all, we must insist, however, that all
parties literally and completely comply with our briefing order, set forth in
Public Notice, FCC 96-469, and attached hereto.  We will give substantial
weight to the Department of Justice filing, as the law requires, and we will
be very attentive to the filing by the Michigan Public Service Commission.

                                  -FCC-