INDUSTRY

Looking Glass Networks, Inc., a facilities-based provider of metropolitan data transport services, announced today that Merit Network, Inc., a non-profit corporation whose mission is to make its network a showcase for high-performance advanced networking for research & education, selected Looking Glass to provide dark fiber supporting Internet connectivity in the Chicago metropolitan area. This is the latest of many similar projects Looking Glass has with educational institutions to provide dark fiber and other services across its metro markets nationwide. "Looking Glass is extremely pleased to be chosen by Merit to provide the secure bandwidth capacity it requires to support critical research and educational needs," said Lynn Refer, CEO, Looking Glass Networks. "The quick delivery and flexibility we demonstrated on this project is yet another example of our focus on our customers and evidence of our metro experience and capabilities." Using Looking Glass' DarkGLASS(SM) services in Chicago, Merit plans to expand this solution into a bigger project involving other universities. Looking Glass' ownership of a diverse fiber network and quick provisioning intervals allowed the company to deliver this service on time and within the customer's budget. "Merit is very pleased with the interaction and coordination of Looking Glass with the numerous parties involved in this project," said Brian Cashman, Manager of Backbone Network Engineering, Merit. "This dark fiber solution met both our immediate and long term requirements for Internet connectivity while allowing us to realize a significant cost savings. The project went very smoothly and Looking Glass exceeded our expectations by delivering its dark fiber services in just two weeks from order launch. Merit looks forward to a continued relationship with Looking Glass and the benefits of using the company's flexible networks to provide high bandwidth connections for research and education."