AT&T touts Ethernet services to K-12 schools

AT&T's (NYSE: T) Ethernet services are finding utility with a number of K-12 local schools and school districts that need higher bandwidth to comply with statewide online assessments and satisfy the growing presence of mobile devices and distance learning programs.

The presence of Ethernet in education comes at a time when schools are operating with lower speed connections, which won't be able to handle students taking end-of-year tests through online portals. Schools also need higher bandwidth connections to deal satisfy the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), an initiative to standardize math and English curricula by the 2014-2015 school year.

According to the FCC's recent "Measuring Broadband America" report, 80 percent of school districts said their broadband connections don't "fully meet their current needs."

Already, AT&T has secured Ethernet contracts with five school districts in a number of Midwest, Southern and Western states, including California, Georgia, Louisiana, Michigan, and North Carolina.

In Wayne, Mich., the Regional Educational Service Agency (RESA) is working with the telco to upgrade its bandwidth capabilities to 20 Gbps to accommodate the growth of online testing, BYOD policies, digital textbooks and its 1:1 learning programs, for example.

The service provider's growing Ethernet sales in the education sector comes at a time when state and local governments and school districts are keeping a tighter rein on their spending.

While AT&T won't announce its Q2 2013 earnings until July 23, the telco reported in Q1 2013 that slow government spending drove down business revenues 3.4 percent and business services revenues 3.5 percent year-over-year. However, strategic business grew 10.8 percent over Q1 2012.

For more:
- see the release

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