"Our activities surrounding the Year 2000 issues are very closely related to Intelsat's original mission -- to provide advanced telecommunications services to all countries of the world. Intelsat has made the Year 2000 issue a top priority and hopes that the rest of the industry takes this issue as seriously as we do," Potarazu stated in his testimony.

In response to the Committee's interest regarding Intelsat's level of concern on Year 2000 and international communications, Potarazu relayed the importance of educating and promoting awareness to users, particularly in developing countries, in order to facilitate technical remediation efforts.

"Intelsat is sharing technical information and providing satellite capacity on a no charge basis for promotion of Year 2000 issues to help its customers and it's partners around the world. An example of this is the collaboration between Intelsat and the World Bank's Information for Development Program, where Intelsat and the World Bank will be visiting a total of 35 countries over a six month period in an effort to reach out to all corners of the globe on this important issue," Potarazu commented.

The Special Senate Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem is chaired by Senator Robert F. Bennett, and was established earlier this year to raise awareness of the computer-related difficulties that may arise when moving into the next millennium. In his testimony, Potarazu highlighted the steps Intelsat is taking to remediate any Year 2000 issues that could affect Intelsat's satellite communications, as well as Intelsat's concerns about international communications in general.

In regard to the Committee's request for suggestions to facilitate Year 2000 solutions, Potarazu urged the Administration and Congress to work together to encourage sharing of information more freely so that the Year 2000 problem can be resolved in an expeditious manner.