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Technology Stocks : Qwest Communications (Q) (formerly QWST) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: MangoBoy who wrote (2010)	7/30/1998 10:03:00 PM
From: MangoBoy	Respond to of 6846

[Sprint Edges Out AT&T as Top Data-Services Carrier, Reports Data Comunications] (sounds like QWST's opportunity couldn't be greater... --mark) User Survey Reveals Overall Decline in Satisfaction MANHASSET, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 30, 1998-- Sprint Corp. edged out perennial winner AT&T Corp. as the preferred North American carrier for data services, according to survey results being published in the August 7 issue of CMP Media's Data Communications. Corporate users rated carriers for how well they delivered the major data services: frame relay, leased lines, Internet access and content hosting. These services were rated in terms of network performance, customer service and value. Overall, Sprint squeaked by AT&T, which held the Data Communications top spot for four consecutive years. Worldcom Inc. and MCI Communications Inc. were ranked third and fourth, respectively, in the ninth annual survey conducted among readers of the global networking-technology magazine. Sprint took top honors in the frame relay and Internet-access service categories. AT&T was rated first in leased lines and MCI claimed the top spot in content hosting, a new category. Survey participants expressed general dissatisfaction with the level of service they receive, as demonstrated in declining scores for all carriers in all areas. "Dropping scores is an indication that telecommunications deregulation has not improved customer satisfaction," says Editor-in-Chief Lee Keough. Keough cautions that dissatisfaction should "sound the alarm" to all service providers. She adds that new service providers entering the market with brand new technology will make service and support an even greater issue for incumbents as they try to retain or build on their customer base. Although all categories were down from past years, AT&T led in network performance, Sprint led in customer service and Worldcom in value. "Sadly, AT&T seems to have taken the biggest fall," Keough writes. "It was once the gold standard among telecom service providers." In addition to being published in the August 7, 1998, issue of Data Communications, complete results of the long-distance carrier survey will be found online at data.com. Data Communications is the only global networking-technology magazine written for network managers and architects who design, build and operate multisite, mission-critical networks. It provided in-depth, comparative information on the products and technologies that provide vital communications infrastructures. Its Web site is data.com.

To: MangoBoy who wrote (2010)	7/31/1998 12:16:00 AM
From: CanynGirl	Respond to of 6846

Excerpts from today's Business Week article: MORE CALLERS DIAL QWEST'S NUMBER Stephen Dalton, head of First Capital Group, thinks he has spotted an up-and-coming prize in telecom gear and services, a fast-growing field. His pick: Qwest Communications International (QWST), the fourth-largest long-distance carrier serving retail and wholesale customers. ''It is dwarfed only by WorldCom,'' says Dalton, Dalton says Qwest is well fixed to take advantage of changes in the industry, including growing demand for increased bandwidth capacity and Internet-related services. Qwest is ''still little understood'' and deserves a higher valuation, says Dalton. He expects the stock will hit 60 in a year. Certain analysts are also high on Qwest. Neither the merger of AT&T and British Telecom nor Bell Atlantic's purchase of GTE has dampened their enthusiasm. Those deals ''highlight the value of Qwest, with its state-of-the-art, U.S. long-haul network, and strong back office systems,'' says Blake Bath of Lehman Brothers. Analyst William Vogel of NationsBanc Montgomery Securities says Qwest will ''continue to do well,'' partly because it's the only company with a network in place for ''data Internet Protocol connectivity.'' And it is likely, he adds, that Qwest will also ''enter into a partnership with a European communications company over the next few weeks.'' Qwest spokesman Steven Jacobsen says the company is aggressively evaluating its options in Europe. BY GENE G. MARCIAL