EarthLink Completes Acquisition of One Communications
ATLANTA, April 1, 2011 - EarthLink, Inc. (Nasdaq: ELNK), a leading IP infrastructure and services company, today announced that it has completed the acquisition of One Communications Corp. (One Comm), one of the largest privately-held multi-regional integrated telecommunications solutions providers in the United States. The acquisition consideration is approximately $370 million, which includes repayment of approximately $282 million of One Comm net debt and the issuance of approximately 3 million shares of EarthLink common stock. Additionally, approximately $21 million of this consideration is being deposited into escrow to fund potential One Comm post-closing obligations under the merger agreement.
With the close of the transaction EarthLink will integrate One Comm into its "EarthLink Business" division. The EarthLink Business IP network now spans over 28,000 route miles across 27 states with over 1,300 collocations, 55 switches and 71 metro fiber rings. The company is well positioned to provide secure MPLS-based IP services to a range of multi-location customers across the United States.
"The acquisition of One Communications is a significant development in further transforming EarthLink into one of the largest IP services companies in the U.S. We now have a fiber-based IP network that covers a substantial portion of the key business markets across the eastern half of the United States, as well as substantial revenue and EBITDA scale in our strategic line of business," said EarthLink Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Rolla P. Huff. "We see tremendous value in the 1.6 million customer relationships we have across the new EarthLink and future growth potential in pursuing value-added managed services over our ubiquitous IP connectivity."
EarthLink will be updating its financial guidance for 2011 to include the impact of the One Comm acquisition when it issues its first quarter 2011 financial results.
About EarthLink
EarthLink, Inc. (Nasdaq: ELNK) is a leading provider of Internet Protocol (IP) infrastructure and services to medium-sized and large businesses, enterprise organizations and over 1.5 million consumers across the United States. The company has been providing Internet access and communications services for decades and has earned an award-winning reputation for both outstanding customer service and product innovation. For consumers, EarthLink is a leading Internet Service Provider connecting people to the power and possibilities of the Internet. EarthLink Business(TM) provides voice, data, mobile and equipment services over a Southeast fiber network and MPLS-based services nationwide. For more information, visit EarthLink's website www.earthlink.net.
SOURCE EarthLink, Inc.
CONTACT: Investors: Louis Alterman, +1-404-748-7650, +1-678-472-3252, altermanlo@corp.earthlink.net; Media: Michele Sadwick, +1-404-748-7255, +1-404-769-8421, sadwick@corp.earthlink.net
Web Site: www.earthlink.net
