[Qwest Communications Extends its Network from California to Denver]
DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 4, 1997--
Completion of Key Milestone Doubles Network Size
Qwest Communications International Inc. (NASDAQ:QWST) today announced that it has activated a 1,277-mile section of its ultra-high-capacity fiber optic network, between Sacramento, Calif., and Denver.
This extends the Qwest network from Los Angeles through the Silicon Valley to Denver. Qwest's customers in Colorado and California are now connected at the highest transmission speeds currently in use.
Construction on this section of the 13,000-mile fiber optic network Qwest is building was completed last month. Service was turned on today, linking Qwest's telecommunications carrier, business and residence customers in the two states. Traffic over this portion of the network is managed through giant electronic switching centers in Denver and Los Angeles. With the completion of this segment, Qwest now has over 2,100 route miles of its network in service; when completed in late 1998, the Qwest network will offer reliable, ultra-high-capacity service at low cost.
"We're thrilled that we have extended America's newest digital network to Colorado, our home state," said Joseph P. Nacchio, Qwest's president and chief executive officer. "Colorado is the telecommunications capital of the world, and it's fitting that the world's most modern telecommunication and information network is now serving Denver. With this section going into service we have more than doubled the size of the network."
The system connecting Denver to California utilizes a cable that contains Qwest's 48 optical fibers. Each pair of fibers can carry telephone calls, video signals, computer data or Internet traffic at 80 billion bits (gigabits) per second. When Qwest's network reaches its fullest capacity -- trillions of bits per second -- it could transmit the entire contents of the Library of Congress coast to coast in 20 seconds.
Qwest is a facilities-based provider of communications services to interexchange carrier customers. Qwest's construction crews are building a 13,000-mile U.S. network using the latest fiber optic technologies and wave-division multiplexing techniques to achieve potential capacities that are the highest in the industry today. By using self-healing SONET rings, and by burying cable in high-strength conduit four to five feet under railroad rights-of-way, Qwest offers superior security and reliability to its customers. Further information is available on the company's Website located at qwest.net .
CONTACT: Qwest Communications, Denver
Media Contact:
Tony Brodman, 303/291-1470
E-mail: tbrodman@qwest.net
Investor Contact:
Lee Wolfe, 303/291-1400
E-mail: lwolfe@qwest.net |
