Corporation for Education Network Initiatives in California (CENIC) to Use Level 3 IP Service to Provide Internet Connectivity for More than Three Million Students and Faculty
BROOMFIELD, Colo., August 6, 2001 - Level 3 Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq:LVLT) today announced it has signed a one-year agreement to provide (3)CrossRoads Internet Access service to the Corporation for Education Network Initiatives in California (CENIC).
Based in Los Alamitos, California, CENIC is a not-for-profit organization formed by the California Institute of Technology, the California State University, Stanford University, the University of California, and the University of Southern California to facilitate and coordinate deployment, development, and operation of a set of seamless and robust advanced network services.
Under the terms of the agreement, CENIC will use a minimum of one gigabit per second of Level 3's (3)CrossRoads Internet Access service to provide connections to the public Internet and other networks for more than three million students and faculty in California's major research universities and other educational institutions, from kindergarten through post-graduate level. A gigabit - equivalent to one billion bits - represents the amount of information that can be transmitted in one second.
"This agreement reflects positively on the combination of high performance and price leadership that Level 3 provides in the IP services marketplace, particularly now that we're operating our own network," said David Samuels, senior director of Global IP Services for Level 3. "We look forward to working with CENIC to meet the network connectivity needs of students and faculty engaged in education in California. And while one gigabit represents a significant amount of traffic on our network, we expect CENIC's bandwidth usage to grow well beyond that in the near future."
Tom West, President/Executive Director of CENIC, agrees: "We're very pleased to enter into this agreement. Level 3 represents a unique combination of experience, expertise, and infrastructure that makes them an ideal provider for CENIC - and for California's research and education community as a whole."
(3)CrossRoads Internet Access Service
(3)CrossRoads is a global Internet access service designed to provide superior network performance across Level 3's multi-protocol label switching (MPLS) backbone currently operating at 10 gigabits per second. Engineered for maximum flexibility and scalability, (3)CrossRoads takes advantage of the latest available technologies to meet customers? needs. (3)CrossRoads provides connectivity from a variety of locations around the world, including Level 3 data centers in the U.S., Europe and Asia. For more information on (3)CrossRoads, visit www.level3.com/us/services/crossroads.
About CENIC
CENIC is a not-for-profit corporation formed by the California Institute of Technology, the California State University, Stanford University, the University of California, and the University of Southern California to facilitate and coordinate the deployment, development, and operation of a set of seamless and robust advanced network services. The CENIC Associates program offers qualified companies the opportunity to collaborate with CENIC in pursuit of the goal of providing the most advanced network services for research and education. Cisco Systems, Nortel Networks, Pacific Bell, and the University and Community College System of Nevada are CENIC's Partner Associates. More information about CENIC is available through its Web site: www.cenic.org.
About Level 3 Communications
Level 3 Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: LVLT), an international communications company, operates one of the largest Internet backbones in the world, connecting 180 markets in 18 countries. The company serves a broad range of wholesale, enterprise and content customers with a comprehensive suite of services including: Internet Protocol (IP) services, broadband transport and infrastructure services, colocation services, voice and voice over IP services, content delivery and media distribution services. These services provide the building blocks to enable Level 3’s customers to meet their growing demands for advanced communications solutions. The company’s Web address is www.Level3.com.
"Level 3 Communications,” "Level 3," the red 3D brackets and the Level 3 Communications logo are registered service marks of Level 3 Communications, LLC in the United States and/or other countries. Level 3 services are provided by wholly owned subsidiaries of Level 3 Communications, Inc. Any other service, product or company names recited herein may be trademarks or service marks of their respective owners.
Forward-Looking Statement
Some of the statements that we make in this press release are forward looking in nature. These statements are based on management’s current expectations or beliefs. These forward looking statements are not a guarantee of performance and are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside our control, which could cause actual events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the statements. The most important factors that could prevent us from achieving our stated goals include, but are not limited to our ability to: successfully integrate acquisitions; increase the volume of traffic on our network; defend our intellectual property and proprietary rights; develop new products and services that meet customer demands and generate acceptable margins; successfully complete commercial testing of new technology and information systems to support new products and services; attract and retain qualified management and other personnel; and meet all of the terms and conditions of our debt obligations. Additional information concerning these and other important factors can be found within Level 3’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements in this press release should be evaluated in light of these important factors. Level 3 is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any such obligation to, update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
