FOX Sports and NFL Rely on Level 3 to Deliver Super Bowl for the 25th Consecutive Year

-- Level 3 Uses Vyvx VenueNet+ to Transmit Super Bowl XLVIII to a Global Audience

BROOMFIELD, Colorado, Jan. 29, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Level 3 Communications, Inc. (NYSE: LVLT) today announced that for the 25^th consecutive year it will provide television broadcast video services for Super Bowl XLVIII on Feb. 2, using Level 3's Vyvx VenueNet+ technology.

As one of the most-watched television events in the U.S. each year, the Super Bowl includes a unique set of broadcast requirements in order to ensure a seamless, high-definition (HD) delivery of the game for fervent football fans around the globe. Super Bowl XLVIII comes with the added complexity of building, for the first time in history, a separate broadcast location in Times Square for FOX Sports. The Times Square remote location includes 4,500-square-feet of temporary office space, using more than 200,000 feet of cable.

This year, the Super Bowl will be hosted at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., which is connected directly to Level 3's advanced fiber-optic network, enabling the TV broadcast of the event. Level 3's equipment and connectivity into the venue provide FOX with fully diverse, end-to-end on-net service to ensure better reliability and control over the delivery process. As part of the service, FOX will also use Level 3's JPEG 2000 compression services, which the broadcaster employed at all NFL venues during the 2013 season. In total, more than 5,000 hours of video content will be acquired, encoded and transported across Level 3's Vyvx VenueNet+ platform as part of the Super Bowl coverage.

"This is the first time in history the Super Bowl will be played outdoors in winter weather conditions. As part of the celebration for this unprecedented event, FOX will incorporate Times Square for a weeklong event of coverage prior to the game." said Keith Goldberg, vice president Global Operations & Transmission Services at FOX Networks Group. "More than ever, performance is critical, and Level 3's excellent track record of delivering the Super Bowl in addition to many of our previous professional sports broadcasts were ultimately key factors in our decision to work with them in 2014."

2014 also marks the first time a FOX-broadcasted Super Bowl will include FOX Sports 1 (FS1) extensive live coverage. FS1 is FOX's new national 24/7 multisport cable channel launched last year to more than 90 million homes.

"This year's Super Bowl is a first for us, in that it's located in a stadium where we've never hosted an event of this magnitude before," said NFL vice president of Media Operations Glenn Adamo. "With this level of complexity, it's important we use a trusted partner to help us deliver the game to viewers around the world. We've used Level 3 for 25 years, and each year, they've been able to ensure the NFL's fervent football fans get the best quality broadcast available."

In addition to delivering the game, Level 3 will also carry the pre-game and post-game feeds to all NFL operations centers; NFL Films in Mt. Laurel, NJ and NFL Network studios in Culver City, CA, NFL Network Master Control in Atlanta, as well as other broadcast networks and satellite teleport sites for global distribution.

"Last year's Super Bowl broadcast was viewed by an estimated total audience of 108.4 million viewers in the United States – making it the third most-watched television program in history – and Level 3 was instrumental in making that happen," said Mark Taylor, vice president of Media and IP Services at Level 3. "We've worked with FOX and the NFL for many years, so we know how important it is to provide a seamless viewing experience for their businesses and viewers. From planning and strategy to build-out and execution, we're there every step of the way."

Level 3's Vyvx VenueNet+ technology is engineered to provide unparalleled HD and standard-definition (SD) digital video services, with added HD and SD encoding, high-speed Internet and telephony services. The Vyvx technology is used in all 31 NFL football venues across the country.

The Super Bowl XLVIII broadcast will air on FOX networks on Feb. 2 at 6:30 p.m. EST. For more information on Level 3's video and streaming solutions, visit www.level3videocloud.com.

About Level 3 Communications
Level 3 Communications, Inc. (NYSE: LVLT) is a Fortune 500 company that provides local, national and global communications services to enterprise, government and carrier customers. Level 3's comprehensive portfolio of secure, managed solutions includes fiber and infrastructure solutions; IP-based voice and data communications; wide-area Ethernet services; video and content distribution; data center and cloud-based solutions. Level 3 serves customers in more than 500 markets in 55 countries over a global services platform anchored by owned fiber networks on three continents and connected by extensive undersea facilities. For more information, please visit www.level3.com or get to know us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

© Level 3 Communications, LLC. All Rights Reserved. Level 3, Vyvx, Level 3 Communications, VenueNet+, Level (3) and the Level 3 Logo either registered service marks or service marks of Level 3 Communications, LLC and/or one of its Affiliates in the United States and/or other countries. Any other service names, product names, company names or logos included herein are the trademarks or service marks of their respective owners. Level 3 services are provided by subsidiaries of Level 3 Communications, Inc.

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Forward-Looking Statement
Some statements made in this press release are forward-looking in nature and are based on management's current expectations or beliefs. These forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of performance and are subject to a number of uncertainties and other factors, many of which are outside Level 3's control, which could cause actual events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the statements. Important factors that could prevent Level 3 from achieving its stated goals include, but are not limited to, the company's ability to: successfully integrate the Global Crossing acquisition or otherwise realize the anticipated benefits thereof; manage risks associated with continued uncertainty in the global economy; maintain and increase traffic on its network; develop and maintain effective business support systems; manage system and network failures or disruptions; avert the breach of its network and computer system security measures; develop new services that meet customer demands and generate acceptable margins; defend intellectual property and proprietary rights; manage the future expansion or adaptation of its network to remain competitive; manage continued or accelerated decreases in market pricing for communications services; obtain capacity for its network from other providers and interconnect its network with other networks on favorable terms; attract and retain qualified management and other personnel; successfully integrate future acquisitions; effectively manage political, legal, regulatory, foreign currency and other risks it is exposed to due to its substantial international operations; mitigate its exposure to contingent liabilities; and meet all of the terms and conditions of its debt obligations. Additional information concerning these and other important factors can be found within Level 3's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements in this press release should be evaluated in light of these important factors. Level 3 is under no obligation to, and expressly disclaims any such obligation to, update or alter its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

SOURCE Level 3 Communications, Inc.