An Ignoble Experiment

AT&T (NYSE: T) is giving its VPN users another enhancement, announcing that it has added Salesforce to its growing network-enabled cloud ecosystem.

Current customers will be able to use their VPN to connect to Salesforce from any location on their private network using AT&T's NetBond technology.

"The addition of choice in how users connect to Salesforce is game changing for enterprise customers who need high performing and reliable access to industry-leading cloud services," said Andy Geisse, CEO, AT&T Business Solutions, in a release. "This is an important addition to our growing AT&T NetBond ecosystem and will further accelerate enterprise cloud adoption."

Salesforce has been a major tool for many companies so AT&T's move to add it to its ecosystem will provide a greater bond with existing VPN customers that are searching for faster and secure access.

AT&T said it expects these capabilities to be available to customers in the second half of this year.

One of the benefits of the NetBond technology is it can work with an existing AT&T VPN through APIs to create what it says is an automated experience for customers. They don't have to purchase additional equipment or software.

Cloud has been a major driver for AT&T on both the customer-facing side and as a way to improve its internal IT processes. In 2013, the telco said it put nearly 20 percent of its internal apps into the cloud. Over the next three to five years, it will be an entirely cloud-based enterprise.

For more:
- see the release

2. FCC's Wheeler realigns net neutrality proposal, promises ISPs can't give preferential treatment

By Sean Buckley

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FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler is taking another stab at the net neutrality debate by incorporating elements into the plan that will ensure that service providers won't be able to put web traffic that travels over their last mile networks into fast and slow paths, reports The Wall Street Journal.

This new development follows a wave of criticism from content providers such as Netflix and consumer groups arguing that it would allow ISPs to enter into deals where they could pay to get faster delivery of their content to end-customers.

An unnamed FCC official told the WSJ that Wheeler will leverage the same approach as his initial plan. However, the revised plan will include language that says the regulator would pay close attention to each deal to ensure that the broadband providers don't slow down the delivery of other companies' content to customers.

In addition, the draft would ask for comments on whether these agreements, which are otherwise known as "paid prioritization," should be abolished. It also would prevent large cable operators and telcos like Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) and AT&T (NYSE: T) from providing preferential treatment to certain content providers.

Wheeler's proposal also will ask for public comments on whether broadband Internet service should be classified as a public utility. At this point, the regulator has not reclassified it as a utility, a move that service providers contend would hinder innovation and investments.

However, Wheeler's revisions will not satisfy critics of his broader plan, particularly those who say all Internet traffic should be treated equally.

Besides industry advocates, Wheeler's plan has drawn fire from two of the five FCC commissioners, including Democrat Jessica Rosenworcel and Republican Ajit Pai, who encouraged Wheeler to delay Thursday's vote, which would open the proposal up for public comment.

For more:
- WSJ has this article

Read more about: Tom Wheeler, Content Providers
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3. Zayo FY Q3 revenue grows 6 percent to $278M on strong organic, acquisition-related growth

By Sean Buckley

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Zayo reported that fiscal third-quarter revenue was $278 million, up 6 percent sequentially due to a mix of organic growth related to new customer installations and acquisition-related growth.

The company also reported that adjusted EBITDA rose 9 percent to $165 million on an annualized basis.

Since March 31, the company has entered into $1,557.6 million of gross new sales contracts, which will represent an additional $21.9 million in monthly revenue once installation on those contracts is accepted. During this period, the amount of gross installations accepted resulted in additional monthly revenue of $19.0 million.

A big focus during the quarter was network expansion. Capital expenditures were $90.9 million, which included adding 335 route miles of fiber and 294 buildings to the network.

On the acquisition front, Zayo struck a deal to acquire Neo Telecoms, a Paris-based bandwidth infrastructure company. When the deal closes, the company will acquire a 96 percent equity interest in Neo Telecoms and its subsidiaries.

The revenue increase related to organic growth was partially offset by total customer churn of $14.5 million in monthly revenue since March 31, 2013. Zayo's net loss increased $7.4 million sequentially and $25.2 million year-over-year from the third quarter of fiscal year 2013.

About 88 percent of churn processed was related to hard disconnects, while another 10 percent was related to negative price changes, and 2 percent was associated with network upgrades. Acquisition-related growth represented about $0.7 million of the sequential quarterly revenue increase.

For more:
- see the earnings release

Special report: Wireline telecom earnings in the first quarter of 2014

4. FirstLight Fiber brings 100G connectivity to its on-net building locations

By Sean Buckley

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FirstLight Fiber is responding to customer demand in Tier 2 and Tier 3 metro markets by expanding its network to support 100G connectivity services at any of its on-net building locations in upstate New York and northern New England.

It is conducting this expansion effort with integrator LightRiver Technologies and using Ciena's 6500 Packet-Optical Platform that delivers the optical services to end-customers.

Besides offering the higher speed services, this deployment is also focused on enhancing service turn-up time. The service provider will leverage Ciena's OneControl Unified Management System, which provides simple point-and-click service provisioning.

Over the past two years, FirstLight has built a sizeable footprint of 1,400 on-net lit fiber buildings and added the ability to serve another 10,000 locations located near its fiber network through a series of acquisitions and organic initiatives.

While FirstLight's most popular optical service product today is its 10G offering, it will have a competitive advantage over other players as it can immediately deliver the 100G services whenever existing or new customers dictate the need for such a service.

"We did not see a lot of demand for 10G last year, but this year we are seeing it become much more popular," said Brian Kurkowski, CTO of FirstLight in an interview with FierceTelecom. "I projected that our Internet bandwidth would double in 2013, but it actually went up four times."

For more:
- see the release

Read more about: FirstLight Fiber
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5. tw telecom revenue rises to $408.3 million on strong enterprise, Internet growth

By Sean Buckley

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