Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. announces favourable Court of Appeal ruling regarding pension lawsuit

Stock Symbol:  MBT

WINNIPEG, Feb. 11, 2012 /CNW/ - Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. (TSX: MBT) (the "Company" or "MTS Allstream") today announced that the Manitoba Court of Appeal has ruled in its favour on a lawsuit regarding one of MTS's pension plans in Manitoba.  The matters that were subject to this litigation were in respect of events that occurred at the time of MTS's privatization in 1997.

The decision under appeal had been announced by the Company on January 19, 2010.  At that time, the Company indicated that it had received external legal advice confirming that key aspects of the decision were flawed and presented strong grounds for appeal.  The Court of Appeal has ruled against the plaintiffs and for the Company and has dismissed all cross-appeals raised by the plaintiffs. The decision of the trial judge that the Company may be required to pay additional funds estimated previously of up to $100 million was set aside. As a result, there will be no changes to the Company's expected future funding requirements or any other aspects of the MTS Pension Plan.

"We are pleased that this issue is now resolved, as the judgment affirms what we have said over the past number of years. We look forward to putting this behind us," said Pierre Blouin, MTS Allstream's Chief Executive Officer. "We regret that this process has taken over a decade to resolve and has been very costly for ourselves, our retirees and our unions. Nevertheless, MTS pension plans have always been, and continue to, remain strong."

Over the years, the Company has remained committed to funding this plan, and contributed and made commitments of approximately $540 million to this MTS pension plan, over $400 million of which has already been paid in cash. Employee contributions over the same period totalled $144 million.    

A copy of the of the Court's decision is available on MTS Allstream's website. Please click here to view the decision.

Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. (MTS Allstream)
MTS Allstream is one of Canada's leading national communication solutions companies, providing innovative communications for the way Canadians live and work today. The company has more than 100 years of experience, with 5,500 employees across Canada. MTS Allstream's business is dynamic and consists of two operating divisions.  In Manitoba, MTS is the leading full-service telecommunications provider for residential and business customers. MTS's suite of services include the latest in wireless technology, broadband services, IPTV, voice services, home security, and an extensive range of business solutions. Across Canada, Allstream is a leader in IP communications and is the only national provider that focuses exclusively on the business telecommunications market. MTS Allstream has nearly two million customer connections spanning business customers across Canada and residential consumers throughout the province of Manitoba. The company's extensive national fibre optic network spans more than 30,000 kilometres. MTS Allstream has spent 11 consecutive years on the Jantzi Social Index for leadership in social responsibility and is the recipient of the 2011 Governance Gavel Award from the Canadian Coalition of Good Governance, recognizing clear and effective public disclosure and leading governance practices. MTS Allstream's common shares are listed on the TSX (trading symbol: MBT). Customers, stakeholders and investors who want to learn more about MTS Allstream are encouraged to visit: www.mtsallstream.com.  For more information about MTS's products and services, please visit www.mts.ca. For more information about Allstream's products and services, please visit www.allstream.com.

Forward-looking Statements Disclaimer

This news release includes forward-looking statements and information (collectively, the "statements") about the Company's corporate direction, business opportunities, operations, financial objectives and future financial results and performance that are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions.  As a consequence, actual results in the future may differ materially from any conclusion, forecast or projection in such forward-looking statements. Therefore, forward-looking statements should be considered carefully and undue reliance should not be placed on them. Examples of statements that constitute forward-looking information may be identified by words such as "believe", "expect", "project", "should", "anticipate", "could", "target", "forecast", "intend", "plan", "outlook", "see", "set", "pending", and other similar terms.

Factors that could cause anticipated opportunities and actual results to differ materially include, but are not limited to, matters identified in the "Material assumptions" section below, the "Risks and uncertainties" section, elsewhere in the Company's 2011 Annual MD&A and 2011 Annual Information Form, all of which are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

Please note that forward-looking statements reflect Management's expectations as at the date hereof.  The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

Media:       
Selena Hinds
Corporate Communications
204-941-8576
[email protected]    

Investors:    
Paul Peters
Investor Relations
204-941-6178
[email protected]