LONDON--BUSINESS WIRE--Level 3 Communications, Inc. NASDAQ: LVLT today announced it is
providing its Internet Broadcast services to a number of European
broadcasters, including Spanish broadcaster Telecinco, to stream the
2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ games in high-definition HD to
online audiences. During Spain’s game against Switzerland, approximately
220,000 concurrent users watched the broadcast at Telecinco’s website,
making it the most-watched event the broadcaster and Level 3 have ever
delivered to online audiences in Spain.
“Level 3’s Internet Broadcast services provide end-to-end
support for content owners – from signal acquisition through encoding,
transcoding and delivery on our CDN – to ensure the quality viewing
experience that online audiences have come to expect from an HD
broadcast.”
“Few sporting events command the world’s attention like the World Cup,
and since we have been working with Level 3 to stream our programming
over the past few months, we were confident in their ability to handle
the high volume of traffic that can accompany a major international
event like this,” said Jorge Martín Ibarra, IT director at Telecinco.
“Our confidence in Level 3 has been confirmed after seeing their
seamless delivery of the online broadcast to record-breaking numbers of
Spanish viewers.”
Level 3’s Internet Broadcast service leverages the company’s Vyvx and
Broadcast Encoding Centre infrastructure and its international Tier 1
backbone to support broadcasters and other content owners through the
process of event delivery from content capture to consumption.
When live content from the FIFA World Cup is fed onto the Level 3
network, the Level 3 Encoding service then transfers the video to any
major media format. The content is then transmitted over Level 3’s
content delivery network CDN to be viewed by fans online. While the
video is being broadcast, it can also be recorded and stored on the
Level 3 Origin Storage server network for archival or video on-demand.
Level 3’s Internet Broadcast service supports next-generation streaming
formats, which can use adaptive bit rate technology to switch seamlessly
between streams, depending on the user's bandwidth and computer
performance at the time. The end result allows broadcasters to offer
true HD streams to customers with sufficient bandwidth while still
providing the live stream to viewers with lower connection speeds.
“The tremendous number of online users who have watched the live stream
of the World Cup so far demonstrates both the potential for growth in
the delivery of live events across multiple devices and emphasises the
importance of having a CDN provider you can trust to meet demand, even
when traffic spikes,” said James Heard, president of European Markets at
Level 3. “Level 3’s Internet Broadcast services provide end-to-end
support for content owners – from signal acquisition through encoding,
transcoding and delivery on our CDN – to ensure the quality viewing
experience that online audiences have come to expect from an HD
broadcast.”
To learn more about Level 3’s content delivery and live event services
please visit www.level3delivers.com.
About Level 3 Communications
Level 3 Communications, Inc. NASDAQ: LVLT is a leading international
provider of fiber-based communications services. Enterprise, content,
wholesale and government customers rely on Level 3 to deliver services
with an industry-leading combination of scalability and value over an
end-to-end fiber network. Level 3 offers a portfolio of metro and
long-haul services, including transport, data, Internet, content
delivery and voice. For more information, visit www.Level3.com.
Level 3, Vyvx, Level 3 Communications and the Level 3 Communications
logo are either registered service marks or service marks of Level 3
Communications, LLC and/or its affiliates in the United States and/or
other countries. Microsoft is either a registered trademark or trademark
of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.
Adobe and Flash are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe
Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries. Other
trademarks, trade names and service marks are the property of their
respective owners.
Forward-Looking Statement
Some of the statements made 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 Level 3’s control, which
could cause actual events to differ materially from those expressed or
implied by the statements. The most important factors that could prevent
Level 3 from achieving its stated goals include, but are not limited to,
the current uncertainty in the global financial markets and the global
economy; disruptions in the financial markets that could affect Level
3’s ability to obtain additional financing; as well as the company’s
ability to: increase and maintain the volume of traffic on the network;
successfully integrate acquisitions; develop effective business support
systems; defend intellectual property and proprietary rights; manage
system and network failures or disruptions; develop new services that
meet customer demands and generate acceptable margins; adapt to rapid
technological changes that lead to further competition; attract and
retain qualified management and other personnel; and meet all of the
terms and conditions of 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.
