Gte Breaks Ground With Local Service

GTE Corp. on Monday became the first major local phone company to offer long distance, saying the new service was available immediately in Michigan and Minnesota and would reach all its customers by the end of the year.

The service will be marketed under the name GTE Easy Savings Plan.

Shortly after President Clinton signed the telecommunications reform bill into law Feb. 8, GTE announced a contract with WorldCom Inc., the fourth-largest long distance company, to resell long-distance service under the GTE name.

“This groundbreaking offering is clearly one of the first tangible benefits to consumers in the emerging competitive environment, made possible by the new national telecommunications law,” said GTE Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Charles R. Lee.