Sprint Nextel Corp and AT&T Corp.

This is a settlement for the Antitrust lawsuit.

Kansas City, KS: (Sep-12-07) A class action lawsuit was brought against Sprint Nextel Corp. and AT&T Corp., alleging that the two companies overcharged customers for assessments that help pay for subsidized phone services. Records show that the five-year-old antitrust case comprises dozens of class action lawsuits that were filed nationwide and eventually consolidated in federal court in Kansas City, KS. The suits accused Sprint and AT&T of conspiring with each other and their chief competitor at the time, MCI, to overcharge customers by passing on more than 100% of the Universal Service Fund fee to business and residential customers. Sources state that the Universal Service Fund was set up to help cover the cost of getting service to high-cost rural areas, low-income customers, schools, libraries and rural medical facilities.

As part of a settlement reached, US District Judge John Lungstrum preliminarily approved a $30 million payout by Sprint Nextel Corp. to resolve the class action. Further, as part of the settlement, qualified business and residential customers will receive prepaid telephone calling cards with a face value of $25 million and the plaintiffs' attorneys will get $4.99 million for their fees and costs. Those eligible to receive benefits under the settlement include long-distance customers who paid Universal Service Fund charges from and after Aug. 1, 2001. The settlement will include all Sprint long-distance residential and business customers, all MCI long-distance business customers, all AT&T long-distance business customers and AT&T long-distance residential customers in the state of California. [KANSAS CITY STAR: SUBSIDIZED PHONE ANTITRUST]