Windstream Adds McAllen Data Center to 100G Network

LITTLE ROCK, Ark., March 02, 2016 -- Windstream (NASDAQ:WIN), a leading provider of advanced network communications, announced today its network expansion into McAllen Data Center in McAllen, Tex.  Windstream will deploy diverse 100G-capable Dense Wave Division Multiplexing (DWDM) routes, providing direct, low-latency transport from the McAllen Data Center to San Antonio, Dallas, Houston, and many other high-density data centers within our footprint. This deployment into McAllen Data Center is another in a series of recent Windstream investment announcements – including the construction of a metro fiber network in Charlotte, N.C. and 500G routes from Denver - supporting the carrier’s on-going commitment to network expansion and enhancement efforts.

“Adding McAllen Data Center to Windstream’s 100G network is another step in Windstream’s efforts as a leading provider of dedicated, high bandwidth data transport services,” said Mike Crimmins, vice president of international sales for Windstream Carrier Solutions. “McAllen Data Center is a premier data center and peering location on the U.S.-Mexico border, and allows international customers to interconnect with Windstream for their data transport needs within the domestic United States. By expanding into McAllen, we are able to significantly broaden connectivity options for carriers in Central and Latin America, offering the reliable, secure and diverse routes required to support their growing domestic traffic needs.”

In recent years, industry analysts have identified Data Center Interconnect (DCI) as an area of high growth opportunity for service providers.  As network traffic moves increasingly to "the cloud", data centers are becoming key termination points for this traffic. Recognizing the tremendous demand for direct connectivity into data centers for terminating traffic, Windstream offers highly competitive pricing for more than 500 data center to data center route combinations, with plans to add more carrier-neutral centers to its network throughout 2016.

McAllen Data Center customers may now take advantage of Windstream solutions such as optical Wave services, MEF 2.0 Certified Carrier Ethernet, multiprotocol label switching (MPLS) and Dedicated Internet Access (DIA) to access Windstream’s 500G DWDM Express long-haul network.  Customers will benefit from speeds ranging from 100Mbps up to 100Gbps to connect to locations along Windstream’s fiber network, spanning approximately 125,000 miles.

Juan Salazar, CEO of McAllen Data Center said, “We are very pleased to have Windstream establish a network presence inside McAllen Data Center. The company has long been a strong underlying carrier in our market and brings even more diversity to our ecosystem of Tier 1 carriers.”

McAllen Data Center offers colocation services for carriers and enterprises in McAllen, Texas, a strategic geographic point located just 10 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border. McAllen Data Center is focused on providing services with 100% uptime and has invested heavily in a proven power strategy to accommodate carrier level requirements.

About Windstream

Windstream Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:WIN), a FORTUNE 500 company, is a leading provider of advanced network communications and technology solutions for consumers, small businesses, enterprise organizations and carrier partners across the U.S. Windstream offers bundled services, including broadband, security solutions, voice and digital TV to consumers. The company also provides data, cloud solutions, unified communications and managed services to business and enterprise clients. The company supplies core transport solutions on a local and long-haul fiber-optic network spanning approximately 125,000 miles. Additional information is available at windstream.com. Please visit our newsroom at news.windstream.com or follow us on Twitter at @WindstreamNews.

About McAllen Data Center

McAllen Data Center (MDC) helps carriers open new markets by interconnecting the major carriers in the world. As the largest carrier neutral facility in South Texas, MDC offers a strategic geographic location for interconnection because of its close proximity to Mexico, which explains the strong presence of Mexican and International carriers in McAllen, Texas. MDC provides colocation services and interconnection opportunities for carriers and enterprises. Their response time to customer requests are among the lowest in the industry, delivering cross connections in just 48 hours. More information is available at mcallendc.com, also follow MDC on LinkedIn and Twitter at @mcallendc.

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