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	apisciotta@kelleydrye.com
	01/31/2001 02:01 PM
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INDIVIDUAL.COM

Here's an article recommended by: Aileen Pisciotta
and it comes to you via Individual.com, Inc.

The following message was attached:
Sue -- Here is an article reporting the advantages to Earthlink of the 
AOL/Time Warner ISP access requirement.

Best regards.  Aileen.

HERE IS THE STORY WE WERE REQUESTED TO SEND YOU

This story appeared on http://www.individual.com January 31, 2001
_________________________________________________________

[B] Earthlink CEO: AOL-Time Warner merger to increase customer access



By Kelley O. Beaucar, BridgeNews

Washington--Jan. 30--Internet service provider Earthlink Inc. may be
playing second fiddle to mammoth AOL-Time Warner in the world of ISPs, but
Chief Executive Officer Garry Betty says its cozy relationship with the 
largest
media company in the world is agreeable to them. No doubt, as EarthLink's
newest pact with AOL-Time Warner includes access for the smaller ISP to 20
million households.



*           *           *



"It provides us access to Time Warner cable in 20 million homes ... for us
that's the only significant thing the merger had done for us,"  Betty told
BridgeNews Tuesday, shortly after the Atlanta-based company released its
fourth-quarter earnings, which beat analysts' expectations and provided mostly
positive guidance for 2001.


Betty explained that EarthLink, which is the second largest ISP in the
world with a current total of 4.7 million paid subscribers has been both a
competitor and partner with AOL for several years. AOL-Time Warner now has
nearly 30 million Internet subscribers, for a total of 130 million customers.
Betty said the newly merged corporation's giant footprint gives his own 
company
no pause.


"They (AOL) are as much a source of technology and customers as they are
very formidable competitors,"  he said. Earthlink already has a licensing
agreement with AOL for its Instant Messaging protocol, and use AOL-owned
Netscape's server applications. In return, Betty added,  "many of our 
customers
come to us directly from AOL."


Betty said he didn't share the concerns held by Internet and media
companies that AOL-Time Warner's merger will create a monopoly.  "I think
competition will take care of itself,"  he noted. The agreements AOL-Time
Warner made with the Federal Trade Commission and Federal Communications
Commission to open up access to smaller companies guarantees competition will
occur, Betty added.


EarthLink is the biggest benefactor of the government's open access deal
with the media giant, as Time Warner's cable lines will be opened up to the

ISP beginning in the second half of 2001, Betty said.


As for the rest of EarthLink's business, the company is looking forward to
expanding its own footprint in the high-speed market in 2001 and it doesn't
foresee problems from the current slowdown in the economy, Betty said. The
Internet companies that did get hit the hardest in 2000 depended heavily on
online advertising for revenues, EarthLink only depends on ads for 2% of its
income, he said.


"It's not going to impact us too much,"  he said, adding the ISP may be
affected slightly from the slowdown in PC sales.


Today, 84% of the company's revenues come from dial-up narrowband
customers. Officials hope to diversify that percentage, focusing on broadband
via digital subscriber line (DSL), wireless, satellite and cable platforms.


Officials said the company's broadband subscriber base has already grown
760% from 1999. The key is keeping costs down and customers happy, an issue
many companies have had problems with of late, especially those with DSL.


"There are challenges that are well-documented,"  Betty said, adding,
"we've done a lot better job than just about anybody in DSL."


Earthlink reported fourth-quarter revenues of $286.8 million Tuesday and
net losses excluding acquisition-related costs of $52.2 million, or 40 cents
per share, beating First Call/Thomson Financial estimates handily by 11 cents.


The company's annual revenue of $987 million is almost a 50% increase over
1999. Company officials said they expect revenues to reach $1.2 billion to 
$1.3



billion by the end of 2001 and an annual loss of 85 cents to $1.05 per share.


Shares of EarthLink were recetnly trading at 8 27/32, up 4.04% on the day.
END



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