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Pink Elephant Assessment Finds MCI Embraces Best Practices ASHBURN, Va., Dec. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- MCI, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCIP) today announced it is deploying Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) practices across its global Managed Network Services operations to create an enhanced framework for meeting emerging customer requirements. ITIL today offers comprehensive guidance for managing IT services and is setting the standard for essential functional, operational and organizational attributes required to deliver quality IT services. "As a leading managed network services provider, MCI is committed to utilizing best practices in the management of thousands of customer networks worldwide," said Nancy Gofus, MCI senior vice president of IP Services. "Through ITIL business processes management, MCI is continuing to deliver high quality services for our customers, while helping them to better achieve their own business goals." Working with ITIL authority Pink Elephant, MCI is helping to define ITIL best practices within a Managed Network Services environment -- a critical step in moving toward industry relevance and adoption. As part of the process, MCI was evaluated across 10 IT Service Management processes within its Managed Network Services Group to establish a foundation for process development and continuous improvement. These areas included Incident Management, Problem Management, Change Management, Configuration Management, Release Management, Service Level Management, Availability Management, Capacity Management, IT Service Continuity Management and Financial Management for IT Services. Pink Elephant found MCI to possess a strong focus and commitment toward delivering high-quality services to best meet customer requirements. MCI's Managed Network Services teams were keen on process improvement and demonstrated maturity in process for Change Management, Configuration Management, Release Management, IT Service Continuity and Financial Management. In addition, MCI received high marks for its Incident Management, Problem Management, Service Level Management, Availability Management and Capacity Management processes. ITIL adoption is fast becoming a focal area for companies, especially among large enterprises. A recent study from Forrester forecasts that implementation levels in $1 billion-plus companies will grow from 13 percent today to about 40 percent by the end of 2006.* "The number of organizations adopting ITIL practices will grow significantly over the next few years, particularly with increased focus on IT governance legislation and the introduction of ISO 20000 certification," said George Spalding, executive consultant for Pink Elephant. "MCI's Managed Network Services has provided solid evidence that they are embracing ITIL principles in their operations." MCI customers will benefit from knowing MCI's Managed Network Services are delivered in accordance with documented and audited procedures helping them to meet their business objectives. MCI will also work closely with customers as they implement ITIL to ensure their business processes match-up. As a result, customers will be better prepared to evaluate changing environments and remedy situations more quickly when working with MCI. MCI's ITIL work will help pave the way for ISO 20000 certification which MCI plans to pursue once the new standard is released in 2006. In July 2005, MCI announced its global network management centers had earned the ISO 9001:2000 certification reinforcing its expertise and leadership in delivering managed network services to enterprise and government customers. ITIL was developed by the United Kingdom's Office of Government Commerce (OGC) in the late 1980s. The guidance, documented in a set of books, describes an integrated, process-based best practice framework for managing IT services and provides the only comprehensive, non-proprietary, guidance for IT service management. MCI has been a Managed Network Services provider since 1989, and today manages more than 3,100 customer networks in 149 countries, including overseeing 22,000+ non-MCI connections from more than 60 network providers globally. MCI has a history of service and innovation in network management -- recently exemplified by its receipt of the 2005 Frost & Sullivan Customer Service Leadership Award and the 2005 InfoWorld 100 Award, as well as its patent-pending IMPACT Rapid Fault Isolation capabilities enabling MCI to lead the industry in service level commitments. About Pink Elephant Pink Elephant is privately owned and is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with operations around the world. The company works with in both the public and private sectors, many of which are listed in the Fortune 500, to improve the quality of IT services through the application of established best practices, including the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL). For more information, please visit http://www.pinkelephant.com/. About MCI, Inc. MCI, Inc. (NASDAQ:MCIP) is a leading global communications provider, delivering innovative, cost-effective, advanced communications connectivity to businesses, governments and consumers. With one of the most expansive global IP backbones and wholly-owned data networks, MCI develops the converged communications products and services that are the foundation for commerce and communications in today's market. For more information, go to http://www.mci.com/. * IT Asset Management, ITIL And The CMDB: Paving The Way For BSM, October 24, 2005 ITIL(R) is a registered trade mark and a registered community trade mark of the Office of Government Commerce, and is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. DATASOURCE: MCI, Inc. CONTACT: Janet Brumfield, MCI, Inc., +1-800-644-NEWS, +1-614-723-1060, Web site: http://www.mci.com/ http://www.pinkelephant.com/

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