America Online Purchases Additional Dial-up Access Service from Level 3 in Hundreds of U.S. Cities
BROOMFIELD, Colo., April 22, 2002 - Level 3 Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq:LVLT) today announced it has expanded its agreement with America Online, Inc. to provide dial-up access service to the world's leading interactive services company.
Under the terms of the new agreement, America Online will expand its use of Level 3's dial-up access service in hundreds of U.S. cities. America Online, which has been using Level 3's managed modem service since 1999, also purchases transport, colocation and other network services from Level 3.
"We are firmly committed to meeting America Online's needs for expanded geographic coverage and high-quality network performance," said Jack Waters, chief technology officer for Level 3. "We believe that dial-up access will continue to be a highly viable and growing business for Level 3 for years to come, and have continued to steadily increase our managed modem business while maintaining strong margins. As a result, we're aggressively growing and expanding the geographic reach of our dial-up service, deploying value-added features, and ensuring superior quality of service to our customers."
"Level 3's high-performance managed modem infrastructure plays an important role in helping us provide the best possible online experience for our more than 34 million members," said Geraldine MacDonald, senior vice president for global access networks at America Online. "Level 3 is a valued partner in our portfolio of providers, and continues to invest in its dial-up access platform, enabling us to cost-effectively expand our access coverage into new geographic areas."
Since entering the wholesale dial-up business in 1999, Level 3 has sold nearly one million ports. The company completes more than 375 million dial-up Internet access calls and over 12 billion minutes of online usage per month for its ISP customers. Level 3's managed modem revenue in 2001 increased more than 70 percent over 2000. In 2001, the company expanded the geographic reach of its wholesale dial-up service so that it now covers more than 80 percent of the U.S. population. Level 3 offers (3)Connect Modem service, which currently has a call success rate of 99.8 percent, in all 50 U.S. states.
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.
