Verizon Plans Global Communications Network

Verizon Communications Inc. said it plans to assemble and operate a global communications network using cables owned by Flag Telecom Holdings Ltd. and Metromedia Fiber Network Inc., companies in which Verizon owns stakes. Getting the network up and running will cost $1 billion over five years, Verizon said. The largest U.S. local-telephone company expects to save at least $300 million over five years because it won’t have to lease lines from other carriers to carry traffic outside the U.S. The first leg of the project, carrying voice and data from New York to major cities in Europe, is expected to begin service by the second quarter, Verizon said. Eventually, the network will serve 25 to 30 key business centers around the globe. The new network will connect to data centers operated by Genuity Inc., the U.S. Internet network that GTE Corp. relinquished control of to gain regulatory approval for its purchase by Bell Atlantic Corp. last June. Verizon will market services on the new network to the 30% of global multinational companies that have headquarters in Verizon’s U.S. service area, a spokesman said. Shares in New York-based Verizon rose $1.90 to close at $54.40 on the New York Stock Exchange.