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BIG DSL NEWS before the bell Monday...
SBC to spend $6 billion on high-speed
Net services
By Bloomberg News
Special to CNET News.com
October 15, 1999, 4:10 p.m. PT
SAN ANTONIO, Texas--SBC Communications said it plans to spend $6 billion over
the next three years to offer high-speed Internet access and other new services to
customers in 13 states.
"Project Pronto," as the initiative will be known, will generate annual savings of $1.5 billion
by 2004, SBC said in an investor briefing posted late today
on its Internet site. Capital and expense savings will pay for
Project Pronto, which will generate $3.5 billion in new
revenue by 2004.
SBC and other local phone companies are racing to sell
high-speed Internet access and other services to consumers
and businesses as demand for data soars. It's also looking
to compete against AT&T, which has bet more than $100
billion on offering high-speed Internet and other services
using cable networks.
San Antonio-based SBC completed its $80.6 billion
acquisition of local phone company Ameritech last week.
The combined company offers service to two-thirds of the
U.S. population and will have annual revenue of $46 billion.
The Federal Communications Commission approved the SBC-Ameritech union with
conditions aimed at increasing competition in both companies' regions, including the
stipulation that SBC enter 30 new markets in the next 30 months. The companies agreed
to pay more than $1.2 billion in penalties if they fail to meet the conditions.
The company declined to comment and analysts said they'd been notified that SBC plans
a briefing on its broadband strategy Monday at 9 a.m. in New York City.
Chief executive Edward Whitacre Jr. and chief financial officer Donald Kiernan are to
attend.
Copyright 1999, Bloomberg L.P. All Rights Reserved.
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SBC/Ameritech major customers:
Key customers include carriers such as SBC, GTE,
Bell Atlantic, Bell Canada, and Ameritech. Redback also is a
strategic supplier to such Tier 1 NSPs as UUNET, EarthLink,
Concentric Networks, GTE Internetworking, Pacific Bell Internet,
Verio, and others.
redback.com |
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