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Strategies & Market Trends : Joe Copia's daytrades/investments and thoughts -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Joe Copia who wrote (24736)	7/15/2002 8:10:22 AM
From: Joe Copia	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25711

Some more "ammo" for my decision to flip WCOME around a core position. Looking less and less like a full fledged BK will happen? WorldCom Controls the Most Internet Bandwidth, Connections, and Revenue, says TeleGeography PR Newswire - July 10, 2002 11:32am > WASHINGTON, July 10 /PRNewswire/ -- The WorldCom accounting scandal has tarnished the company's reputation and could possibly lead it into bankruptcy. Unlike many recent telecom headline-makers, however, WorldCom operates an established voice and data network with significant market share and revenue. Specifically, WorldCom's UUNet business unit generated $4.7 billion in Internet revenues from access and hosting in 2001, three times more than its closest competitor. Although WorldCom offers a huge range of Internet services, its backbone access operation occupies a particularly strong position in the market. "WorldCom is the largest Internet backbone on many levels including its expansive, international network, large customer and revenue base, and rich interconnection relationships," said Alan Mauldin, Research Analyst at TeleGeography. As a result, WorldCom is able to charge a premium for connectivity to its network -- an enviable position for any Internet services company, particularly when its rivals are engaged in a price war. Although WorldCom CEO John Sidgemore has denied plans to sell off UUNet, the decision to do so may ultimately belong to the company's creditors. Valuing UUNet and understanding its role in national infrastructure will not be simple, however. Ferocious competition, rapid network deployment, and turbulent market conditions have made the U.S. backbone a complex snarl of overlapping networks. TeleGeography's latest research on U.S. backbone deployments untangles the mess and provides the most comprehensive view available of how WorldCom stacks up against the competition. Published this month, _U.S. Internet Geography 2003_ presents an exclusive picture of WorldCom's role: - WorldCom operates 30 percent of the bandwidth on the 20 largest U.S. Internet backbone routes -- more than the next four providers combined. - WorldCom connects over 3,400 networks throughout the world -- Sprint and AT&T each connect less than half as many. - In 2001, WorldCom accounted for at least 30 percent of the wholesale U.S. backbone access market -- three times more than its largest rival. In addition to providing valuable competitive analysis on an individual network basis, _U.S. Internet Geography 2003_ includes a unique data set on how much bandwidth connects each of the country's major metropolitan areas as well as information on how this matches up with actual demand. For more information, please visit: telegeography.com Share of Capacity by Provider on the 20 Largest U.S. Internet Routes, 2002 WorldCom 29% Qwest 8% Cogent 7% Level 3 7% Genuity 6% Sprint 6% France Telecom 5% XO 5% AT&T 4% Cable & Wireless 4% Note: Data as of mid-2002. Source: TeleGeography, Inc

To: Joe Copia who wrote (24736)	7/17/2002 8:57:56 AM
From: Joe Copia	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 25711

IMO, more good news for WCOME and its shareholders. This Monday we will know if the ticker merger of MCITE/WCOME will be allowed: WorldCom Gets $2 Billion Loan in Case of Bankruptcy United States, Jul 17, 2002 (Newsbytes via COMTEX) -- WorldCom Inc., the nation's second-largest long-distance phone company, has secured a $2 billion financing package that it would use to operate under bankruptcy protection, according to a source familiar with the deal. WorldCom, which has been accused of fraud by the Securities and Exchange Commission and is under federal investigation, missed a $74 million interest payment on its debt Monday. If the company does file for bankruptcy protection, as is widely expected, it would be the largest corporate collapse in history. WorldCom has been in crisis since announcing last month that it had improperly accounted for $3.9 billion in expenses during 2001 and the first quarter of this year, making its finances look far better than they actually were. The financing package, which was organized by J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc. and GE Capital, will give the lenders seniority over other creditors if the company files for bankruptcy protection. The lenders and WorldCom declined to comment on the financing package, as did the company. But sources confirmed yesterday that the deal has been completed. WorldCom chief executive John W. Sidgmore said last week that the company has enough cash to continue operating for about two more months, but he said a bankruptcy filing could come within the next two or three weeks. Speaking to reporters yesterday, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael K. Powell said he has kept in close contact with the company to ensure that a bankruptcy filing does not lead to a sudden telecommunications outage for its customers, which include several government agencies. The FCC, which expects to participate in any bankruptcy proceeding, is likely to argue that the highest priority in bankruptcy court should be maintaining service for WorldCom's 20 million customers. Under FCC rules, telecommunications providers such as WorldCom must receive permission from the FCC to shut down their networks. But Powell conceded that his powers are limited. "If there is no money, there is no money," Powell said during a news conference yesterday. Today, a federal judge in New York is scheduled to hold a hearing on a lawsuit filed by 25 banks that claim that WorldCom fraudulently secured a $2.65 billion loan in May. The banks say the company was aware of the improper accounting when it got the loan, and they have asked the court to block the company from spending the cash. The court is not expected to rule today, but if it decides in the banks' favor, WorldCom would be forced almost immediately into bankruptcy, according to sources familiar with the situation. By Christopher Stern