EXHIBIT 99
U S WEST MEDIA GROUP
7800 East Orchard Road
Englewood, Colorado 80111
[U S WEST Media Group logo and registered mark]
News Release
Release Date: August 6, 1997
Contact: Rob Stoddard Steve Lang
MediaOne U S WEST Media Group
617-854-3138 303-793-6290
JAN PETERS NAMED MEDIAONE CEO;
CORPORATE OFFICES MOVING TO DENVER
- Amos Hostetter Leaves the Business -
- Several Other Management Changes Announced -
DENVER - Jan Peters, U S WEST Media Group president, wireless operations,
and managing director of London-based One 2 One, will become MediaOne chief
executive officer effective Oct. 1, U S WEST Media Group (NYSE: UMG) said
today. Amos B. Hostetter, Jr., announced today he is leaving MediaOne.
In addition, Chuck Lillis, Media Group president and CEO, said Media
Group will make several other changes in the senior corporate management of
MediaOne and move the subsidiary's corporate headquarters from Boston to the
Denver area.
All of the approximately 150 employees who now work in departments housed
in Boston's Pilot House will be invited to move, in phases, between September
1997 and June 1998. For the time being, employees in the High-Speed Data unit
will not move. Staffing and operations in MediaOne's six regional operations
will not be affected by the changes, the company said.
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MediaOne Leadership
Other management changes are:
--Bill Schleyer, MediaOne president and chief operating officer, will
work with Media Group in an advisory capacity on the transition and strategic
domestic cable issues, effective Oct. 1.
--Julie Dexter Berg, executive vice president and general manager of
AirTouch Cellular, will become MediaOne executive vice president and chief
marketing officer, reporting to Peters, effective Sept. 1.
--Ron Cooper, MediaOne executive vice president - Marketing and New
Business Development, will become executive vice president of operations,
reporting to Peters with responsibility for the operations of the six regions,
effective Sept. 1.
--Doug Holmes, MediaOne executive vice president - Business Development,
Finance and Strategy will continue with his current title and
responsibilities, reporting to Peters.
"This is an exceptional team," Lillis said. "Every person on it has
demonstrated commitment, insight and leadership in past assignments. They have
demonstrated outstanding performance in highly competitive markets, and will
help us continue our leadership role in defining the Broadband services
industry for the next decade. I am extremely excited about the ability of
these leaders to transform our business and our industry for the future.
"In particular, Jan Peters is an extraordinary executive," Lillis said.
"As president of Wireless Operations for Media Group, she's had responsibility
for a significant portion of our business. In addition to heading One 2 One,
she has been CEO of our NewVector Group, and has overseen Media Group's
partnership with AirTouch and our interest in PrimeCo Personal Communications.
And she has an incredible track record of superior operating results. Her
experience in competitive, network-based businesses - local and
long-distance, wired and wireless - is a perfect complement to the cable
expertise resident in MediaOne."
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In separate, but related changes, Pearr Williams, president - Business
Development for Media Group, is named president of Multimedia Ventures, a new
Media Group unit that will be responsible for managing the Time Warner
partnership. In his new role, Williams will report to Lillis.
And Jeff DeLorme, MediaOne executive vice president - operations, will
become executive vice president of Multimedia Ventures, reporting to Williams.
He will be responsible for managing operational issues involving the Time
Warner partnership.
Hostetter founded Continental Cablevision with Irving H. Grousbeck in
1963. Grousbeck left the company in 1980, and Hostetter remained as chairman
and CEO until Continental was merged into U S WEST Media Group last year, when
he became CEO of Media Group's domestic cable operations. The company was
renamed MediaOne earlier this year. Hostetter resigned today, citing
"irreconcilable differences" with Media Group over the relocation.
Lillis said, "I have tremendous respect for Amos - a visionary who made
significant personal contributions to the communications industry for more
than three decades. He is one of the founders of the American cable industry,
a leader in the best sense of the word."
Peters, who will move to Denver shortly, said, "Opportunities such as
this come along only rarely. I am excited by this opportunity to help lead the
company that is at the forefront of the Broadband industry. This industry has
the assets and technology needed to kick-start electronic commerce in the next
few years.
"I am looking forward to meeting the people of MediaOne and to working
with the strong leadership teams already in place in the regions and in
headquarters."
Headquarters Move
The relocation of MediaOne's headquarters will begin this fall and
continue in phases until June 1998. Media Group and MediaOne will be
collocated in the southeast corridor of the Denver metropolitan area.
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The move is designed to improve operations of both groups by aligning
their management teams more closely in the areas of product development and
technology deployment, sharing common financial and management information
systems and providing better access for MediaOne to the U S WEST Advanced
Technologies labs in Boulder. In addition, Media Group expects significant
savings in time and expense from reductions in extensive travel between Boston
and Denver.
"Our business operates in a highly complex and rapidly changing
industry," said Lillis. "This demands close, day-to-day coordination, which is
difficult and expensive when the groups are separated by nearly 2,000 miles.
We believe it's best to do this now so that we can have our management team in
place as quickly as possible."
Lillis said the headquarters move "is an important step in the future
success of Media Group, which will benefit our customers and shareowners."
The company said it anticipates taking a $30 million pre-tax charge
against third-quarter earnings to pay for the move-related costs.
U S WEST Media Group (NYSE: UMG), one of America's largest broadband
communications companies, is involved in domestic and international cable and
telephony, wireless communications, and directory and information services.
For 1996, Media Group reported proportionate revenues of $6.4 billion.