ATLANTA, Oct 10, 2002 (BUSINESS WIRE) --Oct. 10, 2002 --Company Cites Customer Satisfaction, Subscriber Growth, Positive Margins and Reduction in Churn as Validation of Telephony Strategy

Cox Communications, Inc. (NYSE: COX) today released results of new research indicating high satisfaction levels among customers of Cox Digital Telephone service.

Ninety percent of customers reported overall satisfaction with Cox's phone service, rating Cox at 7 or above on a 10-point scale. Ninety-seven percent said they were unlikely to switch to another provider, and 94% say they would recommend the service to a friend.

"We are thrilled with these results," said David Pugliese, Cox's vice president of product marketing and management. "This outstanding level of customer satisfaction is validation that our entry into the telephone market was a good move for Cox and for our customers, and that Cox employees are doing a great job in executing that strategy."

One of only two major companies to aggressively pursue cable telephony following enactment of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, which opened the door for competition in the delivery of local telephone service, Cox is widely lauded for its strategy. The company is already reaping the benefits of its investments in switches, its network and other telephony-related infrastructure. While many other companies have yet to widely offer phone service, Cox already delivers service to more than 578,000 residential customers, and in markets where Cox has offered the service the longest, penetration exceeds 30%. At the end of the second quarter, the company reported a 67.8% increase in the number of telephone customers since June 30, 2001. The product is already contributing to the company's bottom line; in markets where the service has been offered the longest, margins are at 40%. The company expects to achieve and maintain company-wide steady-state margins at the same level.

Cox first launched telephony service in Orange County, California in 1997. Since then, the company has expanded its telephony footprint to eight additional markets and grown to become the 12th-largest telephone company in the country, processing more than 20 million phone calls per day.

In the satisfaction research, Cox's telephone customers also gave favorable ratings to service reliability and "value for the money" criteria. Ninety-four percent of respondents rated Cox as "better" or "about the same" in terms of reliability compared to their previous service providers - remarkable for a company that entered this complex business only six years ago. The company also saw a 2% increase in the level of overall satisfaction as compared to results measured in 2001.

On an unaided basis, 58% of respondents reported that they had chosen Cox Digital Telephone because of cost savings, and 17% said that they made the switch to Cox for better customer service. The company offers a total package of local telephone service with a full complement of features and long distance service. Cox was among the first companies in the country to offer customers the convenience of getting all of their telephone services (local and long distance) from one provider.

Although exact prices are determined locally, Cox's residential phone service is an average of 10 percent lower for a first line than prices charged by incumbent local phone providers. On the second line, customers receive up to a 50% discount over the incumbents' prices. If customers also choose Cox for long distance, they can save as much as 30% on their total monthly phone bill. Additionally, Cox offers customers the opportunity to "bundle" their telephone service with cable television and/or high-speed Internet services. Customers who choose two or more services from Cox realize additional discounts and also enjoy convenient billing and payment options.

For Cox, the benefits of providing telephony services extend beyond simply the revenues generated by the products. Research shows that customers who subscribe to Cox Digital Telephone and another Cox service, such as cable or high-speed Internet, are more likely to remain long-term customers and have a more positive opinion of the company. "Bundled" customers also leave for other providers at a rate 33% less than single-service customers.

"We believed in our vision of becoming a multi-service broadband company, one that competitively and profitably offers cable television service, high-speed Internet, and digital telephone service to our customers," said Pugliese. "Today, that vision is a reality and our strategy is proving itself in high customer satisfaction, solid growth in each of our major product areas (video, voice and data), and customer retention.

Acerca de Cox Communications

Cox Communications (NYSE: COX), a Fortune 500 company, is a multi-service broadband communications company serving approximately 6.3 million customers nationwide. Cox is the nation's fifth-largest cable television provider, and offers both traditional analog video programming under the Cox Cable brand as well as advanced digital video programming under the Cox Digital Cable brand. Cox provides an array of other communications and entertainment services, including local and long distance telephone under the Cox Digital Telephone brand; high-speed Internet access under the brands Cox High Speed Internet and Cox Express; and commercial voice and data services via Cox Business Services. Cox is an investor in programming networks including Discovery Channel. More information about Cox Communications can be accessed on the Internet at www.cox.com/espanol.

CONTACT: Cox Communications, Atlanta David Grabert, 404/269-7054