Broadwing Inc. To Sell Broadband Assets

CINCINNATI, Feb. 26 -- Broadwing Inc. announced yesterday it has reached an agreement to sell the assets of its broadband business, Broadwing Communications Services Inc., including the Broadwing name, to privately held C III Communications LLC, for $129 million in cash.

Under terms of the agreement, C III Communications, a fiber-optics equipment supplier whose first customer was Broadwing, will assume certain long-term operating liabilities of Broadwing Communications Services Inc., will continue providing services to customers and will retain current employees. The asset purchase agreement was signed after approval by the companies’ boards and is subject to customary closing conditions, including approval by the Federal Communications Commission and relevant state public utility commissions.

C III Communications’ investors include Cequel III, LLC, an investment and management company based in St. Louis, Missouri, and Corvis Corporation, a telecommunications equipment provider based in Columbia, Maryland. Broadwing Inc. will retain a minority interest in C III Communications. Cequel III will take the lead in supervising the management of the new company, which will continue to do business under the Broadwing name.

"This announcement represents a significant step forward in our five-point restructuring plan, especially given our commitment to strengthening our financial position and reducing debt," said Kevin Mooney, Broadwing’s CEO. "We continue to work toward other key objectives, including renegotiating our current bank credit facility and closing our previously announced $350 million financing commitment."

Broadwing Inc.’s local communications subsidiary, Cincinnati Bell, will remain a customer of Broadwing Communications Services Inc. under its new ownership. Cincinnati Bell will continue to market Broadwing Communications’ broadband products to business customers and sell long distance services, under the Cincinnati Bell Any Distance brand, to residential and business customers in the Greater Cincinnati market.

For more information, visit: www.broadwing.com