Fairpoint Ready To Complete 'cutover' By The End Of January, Faces Tough Challenges In Months Ahead

摘要

Nearly a year after approving the multibillion-dollar sale, the state utility commissions in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont have agreed to the so-called "cutover" date on which FairPoint Communications, Inc., will assume full control of Verizon Communications, Inc.'s land-line and Internet business across northern New England. The cutover, which has been delayed several times since FairPoint's $2.3 billion purchase of Verizon's lines, will occur sometime in late January, but the exact date will be set by Verizon. "A January cutover would be a truly historic event for our company and for the residents of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont," Gene Johnson, chairman and CEO of FairPoint, said in a statement issued shortly before the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. The three commissions did, however, impose a number of conditions on the final phase of what regulators admit has been an "extremely complex" transition. Consistent with a memorandum of understanding between FairPoint, the Vermont Department of Public Service, and the New Hampshire and Maine Public Utilities Commissions, the services of Liberty Consulting Group, the firm monitoring FairPoint's readiness to take over Verizon lines, will be retained after cutover. Less than a month ago, Liberty found the company ready to complete cutover at the end of January, with the caveat to pay close attention to one area - competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC) testing.