Frontier Communications 2007 Annual Report Download - page 7

CITIZENS COMMUNICATIONS COMPANY AND SUBSIDIARIES
single bill. Long distance network service to and from points outside of our operating territories is provided by
interconnection with the facilities of interexchange carriers (IXCs). Our long distance services are billed either as
unlimited/fixed number of minutes in advance or on a per minute of use basis, in which case it is billed in arrears.
The earned but unbilled portion of this revenue is recognized in revenue and accrued in accounts receivable over
the period that the services are provided.
Data and internet services
We offer data services including internet access (via high-speed or dial up internet access), frame relay,
Metro ethernet and asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) switching services. We offer other data transmission
services to other carriers and high-volume commercial customers with dedicated high-capacity circuits like
DS-1’s and DS-3’s. Such services are generally offered on a contract basis and the service is billed on a fixed
monthly recurring charge basis. Data and internet services are typically billed monthly in advance. The unearned
portion of this revenue is initially deferred on our balance sheet and recognized in revenue over the period that
the services are provided.
Directory services
Directory services involves the provision of white and yellow page directories of residential and business
listings. We provide this service through a third-party contractor and are paid a percentage of revenues from the
sale of advertising in these directories. Our directory service also includes “Frontier Pages,” an internet-based
directory service which generates advertising revenue. We recognize the revenue from these services over the life
of the related white or yellow pages book, which is typically one calendar year.
Television services
We offer a television product in partnership with Echostar’s DISH Network. We provide access to all-digital
television channels featuring movies, sports, news, music, and high-definition TV programming. We offer
packages of 100, 200 or 250 channels and include high-definition channels, family channels and ethnic channels.
We also provide access to local channels. We are in an “agency” relationship with DISH. We bill the customer
for the monthly services and remit those billings to DISH without recognizing any revenue. We in-turn receive
from DISH and recognize as revenue activation fees and a nominal billing and collection fee.
Wireless services
During 2006, we began offering wireless data services in certain markets. Our wireless data services utilize
technologies that are relatively new, and we depend to some degree on the representations of equipment vendors,
lab testing and the experiences of others who have been successful at deploying these new technologies. As of
December 31, 2007, we operate wireless data WIFI networks in 13 municipalities, four colleges and universities
and over 50 business establishments with wireless coverage known as hot spots. We earn revenue from this
service from end-user subscribers on a monthly recurring charge, from colleges, universities and businesses on a
monthly recurring charge for a fixed number of users, and from hourly, daily and weekly casual end-users. All
revenues are billed in advance or by credit card.
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