WASHINGTON-WorldCom Inc., dragged down by a multi-billion-dollar accounting scandal only to emerge today from bankruptcy as MCI Inc., said it will leverage its Internet backbone business to take advantage of disruption in the telecommunications industry in way that could make it a serious wireless player.
“The real winner will be whoever is able to provide simple, converged products and services that can manage digitized content on a global IP [Internet Protocol] network securely and reliably,” said Michael Capellas, president and chief executive officer of MCI. “MCI is uniquely positioned to do just that, with an end-to-end global communications network spanning 150 countries on six continents.”
Capellas was quoted today as saying a big company priority is moving into the enterprise wireless space through strategic alliances.
Before the No. 2 long-distance carrier got entangled in a massive accounting scandal that helped prompt Congress to pass corporate governance legislation, MCI was a top wireless reseller.
MCI appears ready to hit the ground running, stating it will roll out new products and services, as well as announce several new partnerships, to build on its strong Internet network position.
“Our emergence is not the finish line, it’s the beginning of a new race,” said Capellas. “Somewhere between telecommunications and computing there’s a new kind of company, and that’s what MCI will be.”
