Printable Version

ENGLEWOOD, CO, September 16, 1999 -- Rhythms NetConnections Inc. (Nasdaq: RTHM) applauds the Federal Communications Commission's "UNE Remand" Order, which will give more customers more choices of services and providers. The FCC's new rules preserve all the "unbundled network elements" (UNEs) Rhythms has been using. The new rules also expand the list of available elements, allowing Rhythms to serve more customers, more efficiently.

On the broadband issues key to Rhythms' business, the FCC re-affirmed the key components of its previous UNEs list, namely access to the loops necessary to cross the "first mile" to the customer, the transport facilitates necessary to collect and aggregate traffic on a city-wide basis, and the operations support systems ("OSS") necessary to order and provision these UNES on a routine, scalable basis. The FCC also established that national -- not state or local -- rules will apply to the definition of UNEs, providing needed consistency and predictability to the relationships between competitive and incumbent carriers.

The FCC added several important new UNEs. One of these -- "sub-loop unbundling" --, will allow Rhythms to serve customers it could not reach before. By giving competitive carriers additional flexibility in how they interconnect with the incumbent phone companies, the new rules allow Rhythms to reach customers served by a broader range of loop technologies, such as DLC and remote concentrators. The FCC Order now makes clear that Rhythms can get all the information it needs to determine what technologies to deploy for a particular customer and how those technologies will perform. Finally, the Order allows Rhythms to use "dark" fiber -- unused fiber optic capacity -- to serve customers as well as to complete its own network.

"This Order means that, even more than previously, Rhythms will get to decide what customers it can serve, and how best to serve them," said Catherine Hapka, Rhythms' CEO. "By making more choices available to competitors like us, the FCC has ensured that we can make more choices available to customers. That's good for us, and good for the public."

"The FCC's order continues a march toward a fully competitive local services marketplace initiated by passage of the Telecommunications Act of 1996," said Jeffrey Blumenfeld, Rhythms' General Counsel. "This Commission clearly recognizes that the roll-out of competitive advanced services by companies like Rhythms has been among the most important results of the Act. In this decision, the Commission has helped ensure that competition will remain healthy and vigorous."

Rhythms NetConnections Inc., is a leading provider of high-performance networking solutions for distributed networks and applications. Rhythms was chosen by FORTUNE magazine as one of its "Cool Companies for 1999." Based in Englewood, Colorado, Rhythms currently serves 24 markets, covering 41 MSAs. Telecommunications services for Rhythms are provided by Rhythms Links Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Rhythms. For more information, call 1-800-RHYTHMS (800-749-8467).

About Rhythms

Rhythms NetConnections Inc., is a leading provider of high-performance networking solutions for distributed networks and applications. Rhythms was chosen by FORTUNE magazine as one of its "Cool Companies for 1999." Based in Englewood, Colorado, Rhythms currently serves 24 markets, covering 41 MSAs. Telecommunications services for Rhythms are provided by Rhythms Links Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Rhythms. For more information, call 1-800-RHYTHMS (800-749-8467), or visits the Web site at http://www.rhythms.com/.

Legal Information and Privacy Policy
Copyright © 2001 Rhythms NetConnections Inc. All rights reserved.