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EarthLink (Nasdaq: ELNK) picked up 13 U.S. cents to $12.19 in morning trading Tuesday, after the Internet service provider said Comcast Communications (Nasdaq: CMCSA) will try offering the company's broadband services over one of its cable systems.
EarthLink said its high-speed broadband Internet services will be offered on a trial basis in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, area in the second quarter of this year. The companies expect to sign a definitive agreement if all goes well.
Comcast customers in the Philadelphia area will be offered the option of using EarthLink broadband Internet services, making EarthLink only the second non-affiliated company to test high-speed Internet access over Comcast cable systems.
Comcast also has plans in the works to test services with Juno Online Services (Nasdaq: JWEB).
"We are interested in learning more about which value-added relationships with ISPs will be most attractive to our customers," said Steve Burke, president of Comcast's cable division. "Based on what we learn from this and other trials, we are eager to move ahead with plans to offer our high-speed Internet customers a choice, which ultimately can benefit our business and that of our ISP partners."
Comcast, based in Philadelphia, operates the third-largest cable company in the United States.
Atlanta, Georgia-based EarthLink says it has more than 215,000 broadband customers. The company's high-speed Internet service is available in more than 70 major metropolitan areas.
Company shares, however, have lost about
half their value over the past year as the market for technology stocks has
declined.
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