[December 8, 2004]

AT&T Scores $9.5 Million IP VPN Contract

BY JOHANNE TORRES

AT&T (quote - news - alert) just scored a $9.5 million, three-year contract to design and implement a networking solution for Meredith Corporation—a national media company. The telecom will be installing an Internet Protocol Virtual Private Network (IP VPN) to integrate the media company’s 19 locations. Meredith owns and publishes 17 subscription magazines, including Better Homes and Gardens and Ladies' Home Journal, and operates 13 television stations. The company also has extensive book, custom publishing and interactive media operations.

According to the new agreement, AT&T will also provide local, long-distance, teleconference, Internet access and high-speed data networking services. The VPN also will give Meredith's 2,700 employees secure access to the company's applications and databases. Meredith's consumer database, which contains approximately 75 million names, is one of the largest domestic databases among media companies.

The VPN incorporates Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) technology, which provides the flexibility of any-to-any connectivity and the ability to prioritize different types of traffic -- for instance, voice versus e-mail or fax. It aids Meredith to converge voice and data networking platforms by deploying Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP - define - news - alert) services.

AT&T also installed high bandwidth access for Meredith's Better Homes and Gardens Web site. "This is the time of year when our readers and Web site visitors rely on us to ease the hassle involved in preparing for the holidays," said Brad Wyckoff, CIO of Meredith Corp. "AT&T's networking capabilities help us offer quick, easy-to-follow, interactive instructions on everything from holiday home decorating to creative ways to cook a turkey."

With the IP VPN in place, AT&T consolidated Meredith's data and voice communications into a single contract, with centralized billing for all services. Meredith also gained online access to tools that provide real-time reports on network performance and direct access to AT&T's ordering, billing and payment, status, inventory and trouble management systems.

Meredith Corporation
www.meredith.com

AT&T
www.att.com