Company to Provide International Sports Broadcaster with Online Streaming Services for Exclusive Live North American Delivery of Rugby World Cup
LONDON, September 6, 2007 - Servecast, a Level 3 company, today announced that it has been selected by Setanta Sports to stream live coverage of Rugby World Cup 2007 games to Internet viewers across North America. Setanta Broadband will be the exclusive live online broadcaster of Rugby World Cup 2007 in North America, with Level 3 Servecast’s streaming services enabling the delivery of live online coverage of all 48 games, original commentary, pre and post-match analysis and half time programming.
“When it came time to choose a business partner to support the delivery of our Rugby World Cup content online, we obviously took our past successes collaborating with Servecast into heavy consideration,” said Roger Hall Setanta’s CEO North America. “Level 3’s Servecast has a strong heritage in providing the underlying technology which enables the streaming of such large-scale events. The Rugby World Cup is the most important event on the rugby calendar, and with an increasing number of fans in North America it is important that we work with a company that can deliver a robust service to provide the best possible online user experience. We are also delighted to be working with Level 3, as they have a great reputation in supporting sports broadcasting through its Level 3® Vyvx Services.”
Setanta Sports (www.Setanta.com) operates the only dedicated European sports and rugby TV channel in North America. When broadcasting of the Rugby World Cup 2007 commences on 7 September, North American rugby fans will be able to log on to the Setanta Sports North America Web site and view coverage and match play as it happens via either a Setanta pay-per-view subscription or season ticket pass. The services provided by Level 3’s Servecast deliver this content to subscribers anywhere they have a broadband connection in North America.
“It is a great privilege for Level 3 to be able to provide the service that enables the only real-time delivery of the Rugby World Cup 2007 over the Internet to rugby fans in North America,” said Kevin Quinn, vice president of Strategy and Business Development at Level 3.
“Our expanding rich media service offerings, strengthened by the recent acquisition of Servecast, enable us to maximize the potential of the Internet to deliver desirable high-quality content like the Rugby world cup,” said Brady Rafuse, president and chief executive officer of Level 3 European Markets and president of Level 3’s Content Markets Group. “Level 3’s content delivery services combined with the Level 3 network, one of the largest Internet backbones in the world, delivers a unique proposition to serve our customers’ needs.”
About Servecast
Servecast, a Level 3 company, offers proven publishing and distribution tools for video rights holders to monetize their digital assets. These tools enable customers to manage, protect, deliver and track online audio and video content. Servecast provides an easy-to-use platform that supports multiple stream rates, languages, currencies and formats, including Adobe Flash™, Real Player™, Windows Media Player™ and Apple QuickTime™. Servecast’s capabilities have been developed for easy adaptation to emerging video formats and other content delivery technology.
About Level 3 Communications
Level 3 Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: LVLT), an international communications company, operates one of the largest Internet backbones in the world, connecting 180 markets in 18 countries. The company serves a broad range of wholesale, enterprise and content customers with a comprehensive suite of services including: Internet Protocol (IP) services, broadband transport and infrastructure services, colocation services, voice and voice over IP services, content delivery and media distribution services. These services provide the building blocks to enable Level 3’s customers to meet their growing demands for advanced communications solutions. The company’s Web address is www.Level3.com.
"Level 3 Communications,” "Level 3," the red 3D brackets and the Level 3 Communications logo are registered service marks of Level 3 Communications, LLC in the United States and/or other countries. Level 3 services are provided by wholly owned subsidiaries of Level 3 Communications, Inc. Any other service, product or company names recited herein may be trademarks or service marks of their respective owners.
Forward-Looking Statement
Some of the statements that we make in this press release are forward looking in nature. These statements are based on management’s current expectations or beliefs. These forward looking statements are not a guarantee of performance and are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside our control, which could cause actual events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the statements. The most important factors that could prevent us from achieving our stated goals include, but are not limited to our ability to: successfully integrate acquisitions; increase the volume of traffic on our network; defend our intellectual property and proprietary rights; develop new products and services that meet customer demands and generate acceptable margins; successfully complete commercial testing of new technology and information systems to support new products and services; attract and retain qualified management and other personnel; and meet all of the terms and conditions of our debt obligations. Additional information concerning these and other important factors can be found within Level 3’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements in this press release should be evaluated in light of these important factors. Level 3 is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any such obligation to, update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
