Kmart taps Broadwing for dial-up lines
Broadwing has won a contract with Kmart to provide expanded dial-up services for the retailer's Internet access business, the companies said Wednesday. Kmart, which began offering dial-up Internet services in 1999 through its BlueLight.com unit, says the deal will add 500 more dial-up numbers to its existing 6,000 lines. Kmart has similar agreements with Qwest Communications International and Level 3 Communications. The deal is a potential shot in the arm for Broadwing, which supplies telecommunications services to other carriers and businesses. The company has been hit hard by the recession and a steep downturn in the telecom market, and says it faces the extra challenge of being a relative newcomer to the Internet services market. Last month, the Cincinnati-based company said it would close six sales offices and shut down its construction business, laying off of 900 employees, or 15 percent of its staff, in the process.
The deal is a potential shot in the arm for Broadwing, which supplies telecommunications services to other carriers and businesses. The company has been hit hard by the recession and a steep downturn in the telecom market, and says it faces the extra challenge of being a relative newcomer to the Internet services market. Last month, the Cincinnati-based company said it would close six sales offices and shut down its construction business, laying off of 900 employees, or 15 percent of its staff, in the process.