 Excel Communications was founded in 1988 by Dallas entrepreneur Kenny Troutt as a long-distance reseller in the US telecom sector at the birth of telecom deregulation.It started its business by selling franchises through the business model of network marketing or multi-level marketing (MLM).In 1992, the '184 patent was filed and in 1994, the patent status was granted by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).