Has the bleeding stopped? Qwest COO says 'maybe'

Some good news from out West: Qwest Communications COO Tom Richards told JPMorgan Chase analysts that the company is seeing some "stabilization on the competitive end" of access line losses, but acknowledged it's too early to call it a trend.

Like most telcos, Qwest has lost lines to cable companies and ISPs, and has struggled with disconnections due to the economic malaise. It's fought back by offering WiFi and by attempting to boost Internet connection speeds available to its customers.

And, without specifically mentioning a deal, Richards said Qwest would keep its options open regarding spinning off rural access lines as Verizon did. "Just because its right for one group, doesn't mean it's right for another," he said.

For more:
- see this WSJ story [1]

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Qwest offers free WiFi to broadband customers [2]
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Qwest saw big landline losses in Q4 [4]