Windstream's recent bankruptcy filing will not affect the company's customers, a spokesman said Thursday.
The Little Rock-based rural telecommunications company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization Monday in response to an adverse court ruling. But it will be business as usual for Windstream's customers, many of whom have no other option for internet access.
"There is no impact at all to customer service. We're continuing to serve our customers, and we will continue to meet all of our commitments, including customer appointments and broadband deployments and everything that we do in the normal course of business.
"Customers are our priority, and they should be reassured that all the same employees are on the job, they're all doing their same tasks, same roles," Windstream Scott Morris said.
Chapter 11 bankruptcy protects companies that cannot repay debt, allowing them to continue operating as they restructure and negotiate with creditors.
"That's what we're doing. This is really a financial restructuring, not an operational restructuring," Morris said.
A federal judge ruled Feb. 15 that Windstream had defaulted on some of its bonds, making Aurelius Capital Management, a New York hedge fund, entitled to a $310 million judgment.
"We strongly disagree with the judge's ruling, and we strongly believe that the hedge fund was attempting to manipulate the market," Morris said.
Windstream has lined up a commitment for $1 billion of financing from Citigroup Inc. to get it through bankruptcy, the company announced in a news release.
The company has established a website, windstreamrestructuring.com, to distribute information on the bankruptcy.