Stmnt re Third Quarter Charge

Bellsouth Corp
31 October 2002

For Immediate Release
October 31, 2002
For More Information Contact:
Jeff Battcher 404-249-2793

                    BellSouth to record third quarter charge
                      due to Florida Supreme Court ruling

ATLANTA - BellSouth announced today that it would take a charge against third
quarter results to reflect today's Florida Supreme Court ruling regarding the
company's late payment fees. The Court ruled in favor of the Florida Public
Service Commission's position that the late payment charge implemented by
BellSouth in August 1999 exceeded price caps in state statutes and should be
refunded.

The $114 million pre-tax charge ($108 million revenue, $6 million interest
expense) will be recorded in the company's third quarter results.


About BellSouth

BellSouth Corporation is a Fortune 100 communications services company
headquartered in Atlanta, GA, serving nearly 44 million customers in the United
States and 14 other countries.

Consistently recognized for customer satisfaction, BellSouth provides a full
array of broadband data and e-commerce solutions to business customers,
including Web hosting and other Internet services. In the residential market,
BellSouth offers DSL high-speed Internet access, advanced voice features and
other services.

BellSouth also provides online and directory advertising services, including
BellSouth(R) RealPagesSM.com. BellSouth owns 40 percent of Cingular Wireless,
the nation's second largest wireless company, which provides innovative wireless
data and voice services.


                      This information is provided by RNS
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange