CenturyLink 2007 Annual Report Download - page 8

6 CENTURYTEL PERSONAL TOUCH | ADVANCED COMMUNICATIONS
2007 REVIEW AND CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE
CenturyTel Accomplishments
Strengthening Our Networks
• Wedeployednext-generationoptical
technology across more than 1,800
miles of our fiber network, resulting in a
dramatic increase in bandwidth and a
50 percent reduction in capital costs.
• Weloweredourper-bitoperating
cost by moving more of our traffic from
third-party networks onto our network
and consolidating our Internet traffic
connection points.
• Weinvestedmorethan$1.8billion
in our networks and operational support
systems over the last five years, driving
significant broadband and fiber-optic
capabilities along with improved ser-
vice delivery.
• Weutilizedpoint-to-pointwirelessto
provide Ethernet services to select com-
munities with minimal capital investment,
enabling cost-effective broadband
access supporting applications such as
distance learning.
Serving Our Customers
• Werestructuredourcustomerservice
centers into “neighborhood queues,”
resulting in increased customer service
representative knowledge and skills,
improved order accuracy and increased
customer satisfaction.
• WeenhancedourWebsitetoprovide
existing and potential customers with
improved product and service informa-
tion, simplified content management and
shopping-cart capabilities that result in a
more user-friendly customer experience.
• Weimprovedon-timedeliveryofcircuit
orders, reduced our time to complete
installation of high-speed Internet service
and improved field service productivity.
• Weexpandedandenhancedour
Unlimited Savings service bundles,
resulting in a 24 percent increase in the
number of residential customers choos-
ing bundled services.
• WedeployedWiFiHotSpotsinselect
locations, providing customers an
enhanced broadband experience
through wireless service availability.
Supporting Our Communities
• Weinvestedtoimproveprimary
education through school sponsorships,
and secondary education through schol-
arship programs at universities in our
service areas.
• Wecontributedtoprogramsthat
support families, children, safety,
substance abuse prevention, disaster
relief, technology deployment and
economic development in the communi-
ties we serve.
• Weencouragedouremployeesto
actively support their communities – their
commitment of time and personal
resources strengthened numerous ser-
vice and charitable organizations in our
markets.
• Weprovideddisasterreliefandrecovery
in our market areas impacted by floods
and tornados by quickly restoring com-
munications services and helping meet
the immediate needs of displaced indi-
viduals, families and businesses.