Mr. Robert Annunziata, currently Executive Vice President with AT&T, is the former Chairman of the Board, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Teleport Communications Group Inc. (TCG) which merged with AT&T July 24, 1998. He is recognized as the founder of the competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC) industry.

   Mr. Annunziata's vision of bringing information-intensive businesses a choice of local telecommunications carriers not only created a new company called TCG, but also was the genesis for a whole new industry that since 1984 has generated thousands of new jobs and multi-billion dollar investments in the nation's telecommunications infrastructure.

   In the 1984 launching of TCG, the nation's first and largest competitive local carrier, Mr. Annunziata challenged telecommunications orthodoxy by introducing a unique business market approach: providing superior local telecommunications services with innovative technology through continuous adaptation to market, regulatory and technology changes.

   Despite early marketing, operational and regulatory challenges, TCG not only survived, but flourished. Mr. Annunziata launched TCG's second network in Boston in 1988, and since then, has continued to expand TCG. TCG currently operates in 83 major markets nationwide, as well as in Canada, the United Kingdom and Germany. Each TCG network is structured to meet the requirements of the business community it serves through a unique combination of technology, innovation and local management.

   On June 27, 1996, TCG successfully completed a $1.3 billion Initial Public Offering (IPO) and began trading on the NASDAQ National Market under the symbol: TCGI. The following year TCG concluded the acquisition of CERFnet Internet Services, a Tier-1 Internet Service Provider, Eastern TeleLogic Corporation, the Philadelphia and Delaware Valley’s largest CLEC, and BizTel Communications, which holds 38 GHz wireless licenses for 215 U.S. communities. TCG also acquired ACC Corp in 1998 for $1 billion.

   Widely regarded on Wall Street as one of the nation’s most effective and shareholder-minded CEO’s, Mr. Annunziata enhanced the value of TCGI shares from their $16 IPO price to more than $58 over the following 18 months.

   On January 8, 1998, AT&T and TCG agreed to merge in a transaction that at the close of business that day was valued at nearly $12 billion.

   TCG's regional fiber optics networks collectively span over 10,000 route miles, and include 51 advanced digital switches, to serve the country's largest banks, stock exchanges, financial and brokerage institutions, as well as newspapers and wire services, television networks, schools and universities, governmental agencies, healthcare institutions, long distance carriers, as well as medium-sized and small and home office businesses.

   TCG’s headquarters are Staten Island, New York, and its executive offices are located in Dayton, New Jersey. TCG employs over 5,000 managers and associates nationwide.

   Mr. Annunziata's career in domestic and international telecommunications spans more than 30 years. In the 17 years prior to joining TCG in 1983, Mr. Annunziata held assignments with AT&T’s operations, sales and marketing units.

   From 1987 to 1991, Mr. Annunziata served as President of the World Teleport Association (WTA). Organized in 1984, the WTA promotes the concept and development of teleports worldwide as economic and telecommunications development projects. Mr. Annunziata remains a Director of the WTA which today has more than 120 members among 23 countries.

   TCG’s annual "Holiday Calls" program, inaugurated by Mr. Annunziata in 1988 to provide free long distance phone calls for senior citizens, celebrated its Tenth Anniversary in 1997. The program has expanded from its New York origins into a nationwide event that in 1997 hosted more than 11,000 participants, and has collectively provided free phone calls to more than 70,000 senior citizens since 1988. In addition, TCG is a primary sponsor of Camp Sunshine, a nationwide program based in Casco, Maine, that provides free, week-long retreats for families with terminally ill children.

   Mr. Annunziata is a member of the New York City Partnership and currently serves on the Board of Directors of the YMCA of Greater New York. In November 1997, the New Jersey Technology Council honored Mr. Annunziata and TCG as "The Communications Company of the Year" for his contribution to the telecommunications infrastructure of New Jersey.

   In addition, Mr. Annunziata is a past member of the New York City Commission on the Redevelopment of Naval Station New York, the New York State governor’s advisory board on telecommunications and the New York City mayor’s Alliance for International Business.

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