Level 3 Press Release: Level 3 Signs Network Agreement With DANTE

Press Release

• UK-Based Research Network Operator Buys Dark Fiber And Colocation Services From Level 3
• Infrastructure Will Support GEANT2 Research Network Initiative

LONDON, 14 September 2005 – Level 3 Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq:LVLT) today announced it has signed a new agreement to provide network services across Western Europe to DANTE, a UK-based operator of large academic research networks.

Under the terms of the three-year agreement, DANTE will purchase inter-city dark fibre from Level 3 connecting the cities of London, Brussels, Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Paris. DANTE is also leasing colocation space in Level 3 data centres in London, Brussels and Düsseldorf as part of the transaction.

DANTE (Delivery of Advanced Network Technology to Europe) is a non-profit organisation established in 1993 to plan, build and operate high-bandwidth networks for universities and other academic organizations. DANTE is currently building a next-generation European research network known as GEANT2, which will service more than 3 million users across 34 countries. The Level 3 fibre and colocation space will be used to support the GEANT2 project, which is co-funded by the European Commission and Europe’s leading research and educational institutions.

“We’re delighted to have been selected by DANTE as a network services supplier for this important research initiative,” said Brady Rafuse, president of Level 3’s European operations. “The research and academic market is of strategic importance to Level 3 both in Europe and the U.S.; as such, we very much look forward to providing DANTE with high-quality network infrastructure to support GEANT2 and its end users.”

“Advanced networking facilities are considered essential to research activities, where collaboration is required on a pan-European and increasingly, a global scale,” said Dai Davies, General Manager at DANTE. “GEANT2 will allow Europe’s researchers and academics to collaborate, combining their expertise and knowledge to keep Europe at the forefront of global research. High-quality network infrastructure is imperative to our success – and one of the key reasons we have chosen Level 3, which has industry-leading experience as a provider of dark fibre and colocation services. We look forward to working closely with Level 3 during the project.”

Infrastructure services from Level 3 provide academic and research communities with the facilities required to operate and maintain advanced fibre-optic research networks that can serve highly specialized, bandwidth-intensive applications now and into the future. The services include optical fibre cable, fibre-based network extensions, colocation and running line facility space, power, and operation and maintenance of the network.

Level 3’s network spans more than 19,000 intercity route miles in the United States connecting more than 150 cities, and an approximately 3,600 mile in Western Europe. Level 3’s network utilizes high fibre counts, the latest generation of optical fibre, and carrier-neutral colocation facilities.

Currently under construction, GEANT2 is designed to serve as Europe’s next-generation research network backbone. It will provide efficient access to data processing and storage facilities, creating “virtual laboratories” across Europe and, increasingly, on a global scale. The network will also deliver substantial connectivity to other world regions, enabling researchers around the world to participate alongside their European colleagues in international research activities.

About Level 3 Communications

Level 3 (Nasdaq:LVLT) is an international communications and information services company. The company operates one of the largest Internet backbones in the world, is one of the largest providers of wholesale dial-up service to ISPs in North America and is the primary provider of Internet connectivity for millions of broadband subscribers, through its cable and DSL partners. The company offers a wide range of communications services over its 23,000-mile broadband fiber optic network including Internet Protocol (IP) services, broadband transport and infrastructure services, colocation services, and patented softswitch managed modem and voice services. Its Web address is www.Level3.com.

The company offers information services through its subsidiaries, Software Spectrum and (i)Structure. For additional information, visit their respective Web sites at www.softwarespectrum.com and www.i-structure.com.
 
The Level 3 logo is a registered service mark of Level 3 Communications, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. Level 3 provides services through its wholly-owned operating subsidiaries.

Forward-Looking Statement

Some of the statements made by Level 3 in this press release are forward-looking in nature. Actual results may differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements. Level 3 believes that its primary risk factors include, but are not limited to: developing new products and services that meet customer demands and generate acceptable margins; increasing the volume of traffic on Level 3's network; overcoming the softness in the economy given its disproportionate effect on the telecommunications industry; integrating strategic acquisitions; attracting and retaining qualified management and other personnel; successfully completing commercial testing of new technology and information systems to support new products and services, including voice transmission services; ability to meet all of the terms and conditions of our debt obligations; overcoming Software Spectrum's reliance on financial incentives, volume discounts and marketing funds from software publishers; reducing downward pressure of Software Spectrum's margins as a result of the use of volume licensing and maintenance agreements; and reducing rate of price compression on certain of the Company’s existing transport and IP services. 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 release should be evaluated in light of these important factors.