CORETEL FILES $29 MILLION DAMAGES CLAIM
AGAINST VERIZON

Annapolis, MD, July 21, 2003 -- Core Communications, Inc. (CoreTel) today filed a damages claim in the amount of $29,455,189.00 against Verizon with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). CoreTel's claim details the monetary damages Verizon caused Core, and includes interest and punitive damages.

CoreTel's claim is the result of the FCC's April 23, 2003 order finding that Verizon had unreasonably delayed in interconnecting its network to CoreTel's network in the Washington, D.C. area, and had thereby "substantially stunted the growth of facilities-based competition in the Washington Metropolitan LATA." The FCC also found that "[w]here interconnection is delayed, a competitive LEC's resources may be wasted, and its reputation may suffer permanent damage…" Under the FCC's rules, carriers who win a ruling on issues of liability, such as CoreTel, may file a "supplemental" complaint for damages.

"With $67 billion in revenue and $4.8 billion in free cash flow in 2002, Verizon's strategy has been to stunt competition, as the FCC has already found, than to comply with its obligations," said Bret Mingo, chief executive officer of CoreTel. "The FCC must now act decisively to force Verizon to comply with the law. The future of facilities-based telecommunications investment and competition depends on it."

Former FCC Commissioner Harold Furchtgott-Roth on behalf of CoreTel submitted a report describing the significance of CoreTel's claim for the FCC's institutional stake in enforcement of the Act, as well the for the overall health of the telecommunications industry. Furchtgott-Roth noted that "physical interconnection is a necessary requirement for facilities-based competition" and that "[e]ach of the current FCC commissioners has properly expressed concern about both the health of the telecommunications industry and the importance of enforcement of FCC rules."

For more information and a copy of CoreTel's filing, please contact Robin Buckley at 703.533.9805.

# # #

About Core Communications, Inc.

Core Communications, Inc. ("CoreTel") is a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) headquartered in Annapolis, Maryland. CoreTel competes directly with Verizon - Maryland, Inc. and other CLECs in the highly contested data communications marketplace. CoreTel relies on its expertise with integrating the Internet and telephone networks to provide targeted services to data-focused customers. As a CLEC, CoreTel is the product of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which deregulated local exchange telecommunications nationwide, as well as the pro-competition policies of the Maryland Public Service Commission. CoreTel's investors include Charles Ross Partners, LLC. For more information, please visit CoreTel's web site at www.coretel.net.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

Robin Buckley
Buckley & Kaldenbach, Inc.
703.533.9805