University of Wyoming acquires dark fiber through FiberCo

For more information on this item please visit the CANARIE CA*net 4 Optical 
Internet program web site at http://www.canarie.ca/canet4/library/list.html
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[This is a good example of how customer owned fiber provide benefits to
institutions in thinly populated states and provinces, perhaps even more so
than their more densely populated counterparts because of the lack
competitive service providers in those areas -- BSA]


Contact:
Greg Wood,Internet2
(202) 331-5360
[email protected]

UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING ACQUIRES DARK FIBER THROUGH FIBERCO

ANN ARBOR, MI – June 9, 2004 – FiberCo(tm), a fiber holding company
supporting U.S. research and higher education, today announced that the
University of Wyoming has been assigned a pair of dark fiber on the Level 3
Communications, Inc. national fiber footprint between Laramie, Wyo., and
Denver, Colo.  This acquisition of dark fiber will enable new forms of
optical networking and research capabilities that were previously
unimaginable due to Laramie’s remoteness from major telecommunications
centers.  Established last year by Internet2(R), a consortium of 206
universities working with government and industry to develop and deploy
advanced networking technologies, FiberCo provides a means for acquiring,
holding, and assigning dark fiber assets on both the national and the
regional scales and on behalf of the higher education community.

The University of Wyoming opted to work with FiberCo since its aggregate
dark-fiber acquisition capability enables new networks to support
cutting-edge science, such as the computationally intensive biomedical
investigations enabled by the Lariat project, the first phase of a larger
effort called IDeANet, which was recently funded by the National Center for
Research Resources at the National Institutes of Health. The Lariat Network,
once complete, will enhance the network connectivity of institutions in six
rural states (Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, and Wyoming),
improving access to biomedical research resources, national and
international collaborators, and allowing fuller participation in
Internet-enabled science and education efforts. The dark fiber also provides
a cost-effective means to provision significantly higher bandwidth
connectivity to the Front Range GigaPop in Denver for the University’s
connectivity to national networking efforts such as the Abilene Network and
National LambdaRail (NLR).

"We are excited to have signed this agreement with FiberCo because it not
only helps to pave the way for the next wave of regional optical networking
to reach our campus at an early stage, but it also will provide our faculty
new networking capabilities with which to conduct research," said Robert
Aylward, Vice President & Chief Information Officer, Information Technology,
University of Wyoming.

"The increase in bandwidth provided by the purchase of the FiberCo dark
fiber will enable researchers and educators at the University of Wyoming to
take the first steps towards participating in many new research and
education efforts.  This is the first piece of the Lariat Network to be put
in place and I am delighted to see such rapid progress on this project,"
said Professor Gwen Jacobs, chair of the Department of Cell Biology and
Neuroscience at Montana State University and principal investigator of the
Lariat project.

Under an agreement with Level 3 Communications (Nasdaq: LVLT), FiberCo has
the ability to provision both from an initial allocation of more than 2,600
route miles and from future acquisitions of dark fiber on Level 3’s national
footprint.  FiberCo’s nationally aggregated approach enabled streamlined
agreements and lower costs for acquiring the fiber as well as for the
ongoing costs of fiber maintenance and equipment collocation.

"We are very pleased to have worked with our colleagues at the University of
Wyoming on this assignment," said Steve Corbató, director of network
infrastructure for Internet2.  "We consider the placement of this fiber
between Denver and Laramie to provide further validation of the FiberCo
approach – especially in facilitating the extension of optical networks
outside their traditional domain within major metropolitan areas."

# # #

About University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming offers extraordinary opportunities for students to
experience individual growth and leadership development, as well as the
chance to study and conduct research with nationally known faculty using
cutting-edge technology.  As one of the smallest universities in the
nation's highest research classification, UW offers students the proven
benefits of attending a nationally-ranked university, combined with a
caring, personalized approach to teaching and intellectual exploration.

About FiberCo(tm)
FiberCo(tm) provides a means for acquiring, holding, and assigning fiber
optic network assets in support of the Internet2 community’s goals of
developing and deploying advanced network applications and technologies.
  FiberCo facilitates the ongoing development of regional optical networking
initiatives around the country to complement existing Internet2 network
infrastructure while providing a strategic fiber acquisition capability on
the national scale.  For more information,
visit: www.fiberco.org.

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 22,500-mile broadband fiber optic network including Internet
Protocol (IP) services, broadband transport and infrastructure services,
collocation services, and patented Softswitch managed modem and voice
services.  Its Web address is www.Level3.com.



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