----- Original Message -----
From: "Jennifer Lewis"
Sent: Thursday, April 26, 2001 10:45 AM
Subject: BCE's First Quarter 2001 Earnings Release

As promised on the conference call this afternoon, following is an approved statement should you be questioned by members of your organization about the "goodwill write down" mentioned in BCE's First Quarter 2001 earnings release.

The "goodwill write down in Excel Communications" referred to in theApril 25, 2001 earnings release is a neutral event for Excel. This is anon-cash transaction that allows Excel to present its financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting practices and has no impact on our revenue and cash flow.

What this does reflect, is that Excel is operating in a different market than it was around the time of the Telco acquisition, the Teleglobe merger, and BCE acquisition. So clearly you understand, this is merely an accounting adjustment and has no impact on your business.

It simply reaffirms the reality that the US long distance industry is a challenging market. To increase your commissions, you should focus on taking advantage of the full suite of Excel products including wireless, e-business and two-way paging. By increasing overall revenue per customer, together we can reach our Representative recruiting goals of 100,000 new Representatives in 2001and one million new customers by Excelebration.

NOTE: A FRENCH VERSION OF THIS MESSAGE WILL BE SENT TO THE GEM TEAMMEMBERS TOMORROW.

Jennifer Lewis
Executive Assistant toSue Fredrickson