Covad reaches interim line sharing agreement with AT&T

Covad Communications, a publicly-traded Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC), announced today it has reached an interim line sharing agreement with AT&T.

Covad says the agreement provides access to AT&T's copper plant through May 2009 including the former BellSouth territory acquired by AT&T at the start of the year. Covad and AT&T also resolved a number of disputes that Covad declined to disclose.

A spokesman for the San Jose-based Covad said the company will attempt to negotiate a successor agreement before the expiration of the interim deal reached this week to assure line sharing with AT&T remains in place.

"If Covad and AT&T are unable to reach such an agreement by May 1, 2009, then Covad can no longer order line sharing under the commercial agreement for new customers," wrote Michael Doherty, Covad's vice president for corporate communications. He added Covad "would have the right in that event to seek access to line sharing through regulatory and legal avenues."

This development signals Covad is reaching the end of the line with AT&T, most likely because AT&T won't be extending its digital subscriber line (DSL) infrastructure beyond its current footprint, leaving Covad little opportunity to gain new DSL customers.