Telecom service provider CenturyLink, Inc. (CTL) has decided to offer 1 gigabit per second (Gbps) broadband connection to business enterprises. At present, the company is offering this service to its residential customers.
Earlier, most of the gigabit broadband deployments were focused largely on residential consumers. Though CenturyLink is still in the nascent stage of its gigabit service deployment, its business-centric focus sets it apart from its competitors. The service, in particular, is appealing to business customers, as high upstream speeds are generally required for smooth cloud services.
Moreover, the company recently announced deployment of its gigabit service in 16 cities, serving residential and business customers. In 10 markets, the carrier is serving residents as well as businesses while in the other six, the operator aims to provide its 1Gbps services exclusively to business customers.
The company is using fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) technology to provide these ultra-fast broadband speeds which enable faster video streaming and high-definition movie viewing apart from speeding up access to cloud-based services. In addition, CenturyLink is reportedly seeking to expand its cloud business with a prospective acquisition of the cloud computing company – Rackspace Hosting, Inc. (RAX).
We believe, by bundling its cloud services with its gigabit capabilities, CenturyLink aims to make a persuasive offer to small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) and to smaller sites of larger businesses. Moreover, the company is also looking to deliver virtualized network functions through its gigabit connection to largely benefit business customers.
Currently, CenturyLink has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Stocks that Warrant a Look
Better-ranked wireless stocks that warrant a look include Inteliquent, Inc. (IQNT) and RF Micro Devices Inc. (RFMD). Both the stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
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