Comcast Business Expands Network in Twin Cities

Comcast Business today announced the expansion of its Twin Cities fiber network backbone to bring the company’s full portfolio of business services to more customers in key parts of the metro area, including businesses along the renowned Nicollet Mall. Through this $3.1 million investment, nearly 800 additional local businesses have access to bandwidth capacity scalable to 10 Gigabits-per-second (Gbps) and beyond with services specifically designed to help companies of all sizes take advantage of the latest available technology and competitive choice.

“As Twin Cities companies increasingly compete with the rest of the world, it’s critical they have access to technology that will help them run their business and serve their customers as efficiently and effectively as possible,” said Kalyn Hove, vice president, Comcast Business - Twin Cities. “Comcast Business products are designed to provide the kind of flexibility and scalability to help businesses of all sizes adapt to the rapidly changing world of commerce, backed by dependable reliability.”

The majority of this investment is happening at numerous retail, commercial and industrial projects in the Twin Cities. Along the renovated Nicollet Mall in downtown Minneapolis, more than 200 businesses will be able to take advantage of Comcast Business offerings through the power of fiber-optic technology. This historic location is undergoing a major transformation and Comcast Business will play a key role in the future of the Mall and its business community.

“Comcast has been a long-time partner with the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce and we’re thrilled the company is making this kind of investment in one of the most iconic destinations in our community,” said Todd Klingel, Chamber President. “We want to see our businesses have every opportunity to succeed and Comcast’s investment is testament to their commitment of that goal.”

Comcast Business is expanding its fiber-optic network in a variety of Twin Cities suburban projects as well, including: commercial developments in Plymouth at County Roads 6 & 9, Bass Lake Road, Nathan Lane and Cheshire Lane; Chaska’s Lake Hazeltine Drive; Mike Collins Drive and Yankee Doodle Road in Eagan; the Linden Drive/Justen Circle project in Osseo; and Eagle Point Boulevard in Lake Elmo. More than 550 businesses in these developments can now take advantage of Comcast Business services. Across the entire Twin Cities metro, nearly 90,000 businesses of all sizes are passed by Comcast’s advanced network infrastructure.

Whether businesses are looking to connect directly with customers over the Internet, utilize advanced cloud services, or to link multi-site operations on a secure, private network, Comcast Business offers network solutions that work. For example, with this expansion, businesses residing in the area will have access to four different types of Comcast Business Ethernet services, including:

• Ethernet Dedicated Internet – continuous, high-bandwidth connectivity between customers’ LANs and the public Internet.
• Ethernet Network Service – multipoint-to-multipoint connectivity to connect organizations with high-bandwidth requirements and multiple locations across Comcast’s network.
• Ethernet Private Line – point-to-point connectivity between two customer sites for bandwidth-intensive applications.
• Ethernet Virtual Private Line – a point-to-multipoint connection that allows customers to tailor bandwidth, performance characteristics and cost to meet the needs of their applications.

All Comcast Business services are delivered over an advanced network, spanning 140,000 miles across 39 states and the District of Columbia. Serving 20 of the top 25 U.S. markets, Comcast’s network features a 100 Gbps backbone and expanded local footprint through Ethernet over HFC. Bandwidth is available up to 10 Gbps and can be scaled in increments and offered in three different classes of service, backed by strict service level agreements and monitored 24x7x365 from Comcast’s dedicated Network Operations Centers. Comcast was the first service provider in the world to offer Metro Ethernet Forum CE 2.0 certified Ethernet services and was also the first service provider to achieve all three of the previous CE 1.0 certifications (MEF 9, 14 and 18).

Comcast Business recently received four Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF) Ethernet Excellence Awards, including the prestigious Best Service of the Year for North America. Comcast Business was also named the fastest-growing company ranked on Vertical Systems Group’s 2014 U.S. Carrier Ethernet LEADERBOARD for the second year in a row.

About Comcast Corporation:

Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) is a global media and technology company with two primary businesses, Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is the nation's largest video, high-speed Internet and phone provider to residential customers under the XFINITY brand and also provides these services to businesses. NBCUniversal operates news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures and Universal Parks and Resorts. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.

About Comcast Cable:

Comcast Cable is one of the nation's largest video, high-speed Internet and phone providers to residential customers under the XFINITY brand and also provides these services to businesses. Comcast has invested in technology to build an advanced network that delivers among the fastest broadband speeds, and brings customers personalized video, communications and home management offerings. Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) is a global media and technology company. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.

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