Recently, Windstream Corporation (WIN) – one of the largest U.S. rural local exchange carriers (RLEC) – launched an advanced television service, Kinetic. While the service will be initially available to more than 50,000 households in the Lincoln region by the first half of 2015, it will reach the other selected cities in the later half.
Kinetic comes with a wireless set-top box which offers enhanced flexibility and mobility. It features Whole Home DVR and Video-on-Demand services enabling users to record shows from anywhere without incurring extra charges. Subscribers will also be able to watch movies or TV shows from the library.
Moreover, higher adoption of smartphones and tablets has allowed these digital service providers to offer multiple platform viewing options to users. Windstream is also delivering the same facilities to its viewers who enjoy the flexibility to watch movies and TV shows on Apple Inc.’s (AAPL) iPAD and Google Inc’s (GOOG) Android platforms. Moreover, viewers can watch up to six channels at a time on TV.
In the second quarter, Windstream witnessed a 5% drop in digital TV customers. Hence, we believe that the rollout of such value-added services will certainly boost subscriber growth while moving ahead.
On Sep 10, Windstream inaugurated its latest data center in Chicago. This new center spans across a 20,000 square feet facility with over 15,600 square feet of data center space. The facility is also equipped to facilitate Windstream's new EMC(R)-powered storage services and is further expected to meet the growing demand for data centers and managed services from customers all over the nation.
The unit will also lend support to Windstream Hosted Solutions for the management of its extensive network of cloud computing solutions. This technology aids in improving the efficiency and accessibility of IT resources and applications.
We believe that the continuous launch of such data centers coupled with the recent Kinetic advanced TV service will drive subscriber growth and also improve overall business performance for the company, thereby lending it a competitive edge over peers like Frontier Communications (FTR) and Cbeyond Inc.
Windstream currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
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