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

To: mrnaive who wrote (2306)	10/16/1998 3:44:00 PM
From: MangoBoy	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 6846

[Analysts Remain Bullish On Companies Building Fiber-Optic Networks] NEW YORK -(Dow Jones)- Some technology analysts see an improving climate for the major independent builders and operators of fiber-optic voice and data networks, saying the demand for digital audio and video on the Internet and corporate networks is increasing dramatically. IXC Communications Inc. (IIXC), Qwest Communications International Inc. (QWST), Level 3 Communications Inc. (LVLT) and Williams Cos. (WMB) plan to build a total of 63,000 new miles of fiber-optic networks by next year, increasing the amount of fiber-optic cable in the world by more than 60%. As telecommunications, cable-television and Internet-access become increasingly intertwined, the operators of efficient fiber-optic networks are poised to benefit. Once the networks are built, these companies will start to sell their own telecommunications services, primarily to business customers. Richard Klugman, telecom analyst at Goldman Sachs & Co., acknowledges that the big incumbent long-distance carriers have established brand names in selling network services to corporate America, where the demand for high-speed data networks is heaviest and most immediate. But with the low-cost service the new carriers provide, they are already beginning to make some headway against the big names. "Qwest's promise to deliver to consumers long-distance calls for 7.5 cents a minute, for example, is quite compelling," Klugman said. Some investors have been worried that financing for these terribly expensive networks would be a problem, especially as credit gets tighter amid recent market volatility. But a number of analysts don't see financing as a problem, even though most of these networks are only about half-built. "I don't believe any of these companies will have difficulties on the financing side and [in] meeting their deadlines," Klugman said. "Qwest and IXC, for example, are on similar schedules, and most of the segments of their networks [are] either complete, or the hard, dirty work is done. Remember, Qwest is historically a construction company, this is their core competency." Williams is in good shape because of its deep-pocketed parent company and recurring revenue from its natural-gas business. Its network is also furthest along, being three-quarters complete. Williams recently announced a deal with IXC in which the two companies agreed to share the construction costs of a new 250-mile fiber-optic route connecting Dallas to Houston. "There's nothing to worry about in terms of those networks getting built," Klugman said.