announced a new global telecommunications venture.

But yesterday it was still unclear at to whether the telecoms conglomerate will have a presence in Bermuda.

AT&T and BT -- Britain's main telephone company -- teamed up to offer Concert Ltd which will begin operations this year as a leading global telecommunications company to serve multi-national business customers, international carriers and Internet service providers, Business Wire reported.

"Through Concert, AT&T and BT are aggressively executing a strategy to take advantage of fast growing global telecommunications market that is now worth more than $100 billion,'' it said.

And local executive search and selection firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers have advertised employment opportunities for the billion-dollar firm.

A spokesman for the firm declined to comment on the new venture, citing protecting their clients' interests.

And Telecommunications Minister Renee Webb also declined to shed any further light on the matter.

But Business Wire reported that Concert intended to provide customers with communications services of an unprecedented scale, scope and quality with the industry's broadest portfolio of voice, data and Internet services.

It has a direct sales force serving approximately 270 multinational customers and through its network of global distributors, it also serves an additional 29,000 customers worldwide. Concert's frame relay network reaches every major city in the United States and the United Kingdom and extends to an additional 170 cities in 47 countries. Its global public network directly reaches 237 countries -- more than any other network.

Yesterday's Royal Gazette advertised that Concert was in the process of setting up a combination of network platforms spanning the world with their new presence in Bermuda acting as coordinator.