FRONT LINE ALERT MARCH 21, 1995 AGT LIMITED TO INTRODUCE INTERNET ACCESS SERVICE Background Many front line employees have received calls from business and residential customers requesting information about AGT's intenetion to enter the market for providing Internet access services. This Front Line Alert will help you answer customers' questions. What is the Internet? The Internet is a network of computer networks, global in scope. At present, there are more than 20,000 networks connected to the Internet, comprising more than 5 million computers and more than 30 million users. By the turn of the century, best estimates claim there will be more than 100 million people using the Internet daily. Why do people want access to the Internet? Vast quantities of free or almost-free information exists on the Internet for the taking. If you can imagine it, it's probably already available somewhere on the Internet. Governments, businesses, and non-profit organizations of all types are already on the Internet. If they wish, individuals can publish their own information over the Internet and have an immediate audience of millions. As well, services such as e-mail allow users across the planet to communicate directly and rapidly with each other for extremely low cost. All this makes the Internet incredibly attractive to anyone for whom information, and access to information, is important. Is AGT going to offer its customers access to the Internet? Yes. AGT intends to launch Internet service on May 1, 1995, subject to CRTC approval, and is in the process of filing a tariff with the CRTC. Another of the TELUS group of companies, ED TEL, will be launching a dovetailing service in the city of Edmonton, with a launch date similar to AGT's. People traveling between ED TEL and AGT service areas will still be able to access their respective services. Will AGT Have Competitors? Definitely! Internet access providers already exist in Alberta, primarily in Edmonton and Calgary. AGT will bring to the market something the competitors have not yet brought: a highly-available, highly survivable, very-high-speed access service, with the convenience of billing through a customer's existing telephone bill. Upon service launch, the Edmonton and Calgary extended flat rate calling areas (EFRCs) will receive service without incurring long distance charges. Service options to the remainder of the province will be established through a variety of means by the end of 1995. What service options will be available? At service launch, customers will be able to dial-up to a modem pool from a stand-alone home- or work-based computer, receive stand-alone or LAN-based access via ISDN dial-up links, or establish a dedicated connection from their LAN or PC to the Internet via AGT's Centrex data facilities. What prices will customers pay for the service? The prices will be finalized upon filing of the tariff with the CRTC. This filing is expected at the end of March. At present, proposed rates are very competitive with those of other service providers, and are lower than those of the other two provincial telcos who have already announced Internet access, NBTel (via NBNet) and SaskTel (via SaskNet). Will AGT provide access to the Internet for employees? AGT employees wishing personal access will be required to purchase the service on the same terms and conditions as any other resident of Alberta. For official AGT purposes, consideration is being given to providing access via AGT's new corporate LAN. Details will be announced as they become available. Does AGT intend to censor any of the information flowing over the Internet? No. AGT neither censors nor monitors telephone conversations. In like fashion, AGT will in no way impede the flow of information from the larger Internet into Alberta. However, AGT will not offer Internet accounts to minors and is preparing an information package for concerned parents and teachers who might wish to subscribe. Residents of Alberta who subscribe to AGT's Internet service will be subject to an Acceptable Use Policy which is similar to the existing policy for use of the telephone. In offering this service, is AGT abusing its monopoly powers to compete with smaller Internet access providers? No. AGT is no longer a monopoly crown corporation. AGT is owned by shareholders, the majority of which are Albertans, who expect AGT to offer high-quality, profitable services. The Internet is growing at a rapid pace, and there is room in the market for all manner of access providers. Consumers will continue to choose their providers based on their own perceptions of service and price. AGT will not subsidizing its Internet offering from other parts of the business. Distribution note This Front Line Alert has been sent to all AGT Limited front line employees who have access to PROFS. If you have staff who do not have PROFS access, please distribute this alert.