BROOMFIELD, Colo., Oct. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- By recent
estimates, more than 218 million people are eligible to vote in the
Nov. 8 presidential election. What is
on the mind of voters? Ahead of the first presidential debate,
Level 3 Communications (NYSE: LVLT) brought together leaders from
academia, government, media and cybersecurity sectors for a Twitter
Chat around online voting. The chat covered the pros and cons of
online voting, how to secure the process and how the U.S. could
implement online voting with the technology we have today.
Experience the interactive Multimedia News Release here:
https://www.multivu.com/players/English/7911452-level-3-delivering-democracy-video-series
It is clear from the Twitter Chat and other discussions on the
topic that the U.S. still has a long way to go; however, it is
important to note we would not be having these conversations if it
were not for the advancements in technology and telecommunications
over the years. To increase understanding of the critical role
technology and telecommunications play in our election process,
Level 3 has released a video series featuring experts from varying
backgrounds who explore the history of the technology and how it
has shaped democracy.
The video series focuses on advancements in telecommunications
since the early 1900s, including the first transatlantic phone
line, TV cable line and the introduction of fiber optics – all of
which played a significant role in how people engaged in political
discourse and made voting decisions.
Along with the series is an infographic highlighting major
technology and telecommunications milestones over the last 100
years of elections.
Series Highlights:
- When the first transatlantic long distance line was built in
1915, it cost $6 per minute to make a
long distance phone call. In today's dollars, that would be the
equivalent of paying $143.19 per
minute. This explains why only the very rich could avail themselves
of the technology and were typically the first to get the latest
news from across the country – including all the latest on
candidates, elections and political events. This long distance line
provided the foundation for cross-country communications, which are
now essential to our ability to receive information and make
educated voting decisions.
- Many people believe the internet began back in the 1960's with
the launch of the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network
(ARPANET). However, according to the telecom buffs at the
Telecommunications History Group, the infrastructure put in place
from the early 1900's to the 1950's – when the first transatlantic
TV cable went live – was a big part of the foundation for the
internet we know today.
- Thanks to fiber optics, we can access all the information we
could ever want on the elections and still have plenty of bandwidth
to enable technologies like content delivery networks, VoIP,
broadcast fiber, wavelengths, MPLS and IP VPN. This is a far cry
from the trunk cables used prior to fiber, which comprised 4,200
pairs of wires and could carry just 1/300 of the information of one
single glass fiber.
About Level 3 Communications
Level 3 Communications,
Inc. (NYSE: LVLT) is a Fortune 500 company that provides local,
national and global communications services to enterprise,
government and carrier customers. Level 3's comprehensive portfolio
of secure, managed solutions includes fiber and infrastructure
solutions; IP-based voice and data communications; wide-area
Ethernet services; video and content distribution; data center and
cloud-based solutions. Level 3 serves customers in more than 500
markets in over 60 countries across a global services platform
anchored by owned fiber networks on three continents and connected
by extensive undersea facilities. Level 3 services are provided by
subsidiaries of Level 3 Communications, Inc. For more
information, visit www.level3.com or get to know us on Twitter,
Facebook and LinkedIn.
Contact
Information
|
|
Media:
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Investors:
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Francie
Dudrey
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Mark
Stoutenberg
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+1
720-888-5434
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+1 720-888-2518
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francie.dudrey@level3.com
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mark.stoutenberg@level3.com
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visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/technology-has-played-important-role-in-shaping-democracy-300338527.html
SOURCE Level 3 Communications (LVLT)