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Weekly UpdatesLevel 3 Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:LVLT), Broomfield, Colo., has signed an agreement for supplying wholesale Voice-over-IP services to Skype, the global Internet telephony company.
Under the terms of the agreement, Skype will use Level 3's IP-based voice termination service to support its new consumer offering, SkypeOut. The service enables Skype users to make Voice-over-IP calls from their personal computers to any phone anywhere in the world.
"Skype has enjoyed tremendous success in bringing the benefits of Internet calling to consumers all over the globe," said Niklas Zennstrom, Skype's co-founder and chief executive officer. "With SkypeOut, we are expanding our service significantly. Our subscribers will now be able to make IP-based voice calls outside the peer-to-peer environment to friends and family who use standard wireline or cell phones, all at highly competitive rates.
"We selected Level 3 as a termination partner because of the quality and reliability of their network and because of Level 3's industry-leading experience as a provider of wholesale VoIP services. In particular, Level 3's softswitch platform provided us with a simple, seamless interface between Skype's IP-based calling environment and the public switched telephone network. We look forward to working with Level 3 to further enhance the value of Skype services for our existing and prospective customers."
"More than 7 million people in over 170 countries have joined Skype since the company launched its Internet telephony software last year, and the company averages close to 400,000 active users at any point in time," said Sureel Choksi, president of softswitch services for Level 3. "By any measure, that is a significant accomplishment, and a testament to the quality of Skype's offering and the inherent advantages of Voice over IP."
"We're extremely pleased that Skype has chosen Level 3 as a primary provider of voice termination services," said Brady Rafuse, president of Level 3's European operations. "We believe we deliver superior value and experience to our termination customers, and we look forward to supporting Skype on this important initiative."
Level 3's (3)Voice(R) Termination service enables traditional and emerging carriers, enhanced service providers, ISPs, cable operators and other companies to terminate calls globally. (3)Voice Termination was the world's first long-distance voice service to offer customers voice quality indistinguishable from traditional telephone networks, but with the efficiencies of IP.
Level 3 sells voice termination, toll free and local inbound VoIP services directly to its wholesale customers. The company also offers a complete suite of business and residential VoIP services, which are sold through channel partners and value-added resellers. Level 3 delivers its voice services over the world's largest softswitch platform, terminating more than 35 billion minutes of voice and dial access every month. For further information about Level 3's voice products, go to http://www.level3.com.
Headquartered in Luxembourg, Skype Technologies S.A. enables consumers around the world to make free, unlimited voice calls via peer-to-peer software available in 20 languages. Skype Technologies is privately held and backed by a number of international venture capital firms, including Bessemer Venture Partners, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Index Ventures, and Mangrove Venture Partners.
About Level 3 Communications
Level 3 (NASDAQ:LVLT) is an international communications and information services company. The company operates one of the largest Internet backbones in the world, is one of the largest providers of wholesale dial-up service to ISPs in North America and is the primary provider of Internet connectivity for millions of broadband subscribers, through its cable and DSL partners. The company offers a wide range of communications services over its 23,000 mile broadband fibre optic network including Internet Protocol (IP) services, broadband transport and infrastructure services, colocation services, and patented Softswitch managed modem and voice services.
For more information, visit http://www.Level3.com.
The company offers information services through its subsidiaries, Software Spectrum and (i)Structure.
For more information, visit http://www.softwarespectrum.com and http://www.i-structure.com or call 720/888-2517.
Level 3 (Nasdaq:LVLT) is an international communications and information services company. The company operates one of the largest Internet backbones in the world, is one of the largest providers of wholesale dial-up service to ISPs in North America and is the primary provider of Internet connectivity for millions of broadband subscribers, through its cable and DSL partners.
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