Lumen Technologies Inc (LUMN) 2025 Q1 法說會逐字稿

Greetings and welcome to the Lumen Technologies' first-quarter 2025 earnings call.

問候並歡迎參加 Lumen Technologies 2025 年第一季財報電話會議。

(Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference is being recorded Thursday, May 1, 2025.

（操作員指示）提醒一下，本次會議將於 2025 年 5 月 1 日星期四進行錄製。

Your speakers for today are Kate Johnson, CEO; and Chris Stansbury, CFO.

今天的演講者是首席執行官凱特·約翰遜 (Kate Johnson)；以及首席財務官克里斯·斯坦斯伯里 (Chris Stansbury)。

I would now like to turn the conference over to Jim Breen, Senior Vice President, Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

現在，我想將會議交給投資者關係高級副總裁 Jim Breen。請繼續。

Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for joining Lumen Technologies' first-quarter 2025 earnings call.

大家下午好。感謝您參加 Lumen Technologies 2025 年第一季財報電話會議。

On the call today are Kate Johnson, President and CEO; and Chris Stansbury, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer.

參加今天電話會議的有總裁兼執行長凱特·約翰遜 (Kate Johnson)；以及執行副總裁兼首席財務官克里斯·斯坦斯伯里 (Chris Stansbury)。

Before we begin, I need to call your attention to our Safe Harbor statement on Slide 1 of our first-quarter 2025 presentation, which notes that this conference call may include forward-looking statements subject to certain risks and uncertainties. All forward-looking statements should be considered in conjunction with the cautionary statements and the risk factors in our SEC filings.

在我們開始之前，我需要提請您注意我們 2025 年第一季簡報投影片 1 上的安全港聲明，其中指出本次電話會議可能包含受某些風險和不確定性影響的前瞻性陳述。所有前瞻性陳述都應與我們提交給美國證券交易委員會 (SEC) 的文件中提出的警示性聲明和風險因素一起考慮。

We will be referring to certain non-GAAP financial measures reconciled to the most comparable GAAP measures, which can be found in our earnings press release.

我們將參考與最具可比性的 GAAP 指標相協調的某些非 GAAP 財務指標，這些指標可在我們的收益新聞稿中找到。

In addition, certain metrics discussed today exclude costs for special items, as detailed in our earnings materials, which can be found on our Investor Relations section of our website.

此外，今天討論的某些指標不包括特殊項目的成本，詳見我們的收益資料，可在我們網站的投資者關係部分找到。

Finally, new this quarter, we've posted some frequently asked questions, along with the earnings materials, for your reference.

最後，本季我們發布了一些常見問題以及收益資料，供您參考。

With that, I'll turn the call over to Kate.

說完這些，我就把電話轉給凱特。

Thanks, Jim. Thanks, everybody, for joining the call.

謝謝，吉姆。感謝大家參加電話會議。

In the first quarter of 2025, we remain focused on our three company-wide priorities: to drive operational excellence in our core businesses, build the backbone for the AI economy; and cloudify telecom. And I'm happy to share that we made material progress across all three areas, culminating in strong financial results and various external accolades, including being named one of Fortune's most innovative companies and Frost & Sullivan's DIA Company of the Year.

2025年第一季度，我們仍專注於全公司的三大優先事項：推動核心業務的卓越運營，建構人工智慧經濟的支柱；以及雲端化電信。我很高興地告訴大家，我們在所有三個領域都取得了實質進展，最終取得了強勁的財務業績和各種外部讚譽，包括被評為《財富》最具創新力的公司之一和 Frost & Sullivan 的年度 DIA 公司。

Today, I'm going to explain exactly why.

今天，我將詳細解釋原因。

I've talked about driving operational excellence in the past: we're upgrading our systems, simplifying our product portfolio, unifying our networks, upgrading our go-to-market teams, and improving execution, overall. And our financial results in the first quarter show the results of that rigor.

我過去曾談到推動卓越營運：我們正在升級我們的系統，簡化我們的產品組合，統一我們的網絡，升級我們的行銷團隊，並全面提高執行力。我們第一季的財務表現反映了這種嚴謹態度的成果。

We strengthened our balance sheet with the term loan refinancing. We beat consensus for revenue, EBITDA, and free cash flow, with our North American business, Grow, revenue, up 7.9% year over year and total North American business revenue down only 2.2% year over- year, approximately one quarter of the decline of our peers in the industry.

我們透過定期貸款再融資加強了我們的資產負債表。我們的營收、EBITDA 和自由現金流均超出預期，其中北美業務 Grow 營收年增 7.9%，北美業務總營收年減 2.2%，約為業內同業降幅的四分之一。

And Wave's revenue grew on a year-over-year basis, a reflection of our strong wave sales, with great companies like Activision, T-Mobile, and AARP.

Wave 的營收年增，反映了我們與 Activision、T-Mobile 和 AARP 等優秀公司合作的強勁 Wave 銷售業績。

Thirdly, an important driver of revenue and EBITDA performance in the first quarter was the lowest level of absolute dollar disconnects in the past five quarters, with an over 8% improvement from the first quarter of 2024.

第三，第一季營收和 EBITDA 表現的一個重要驅動因素是過去五個季度以來絕對美元脫鉤率的最低水平，比 2024 年第一季改善了 8% 以上。

We continue to actively engage with our customers to migrate them to the newest technologies, showing how our installed base is becoming a material advantage in our digital revenue growth trajectory.

我們繼續積極與客戶合作，幫助他們遷移到最新技術，展示我們的安裝基礎如何成為我們數位收入成長軌跡中的實質優勢。

Lastly, Lumen's modernization and simplification work is going very well, with continued progress implementing new digital enterprise applications, unifying our network architectures from four to one, and using AI to drive intelligence and automation in everything we do.

最後，Lumen 的現代化和簡化工作進展順利，在實施新的數位企業應用程式、將我們的網路架構從四個統一為一個以及使用人工智慧來推動我們所做的一切的智慧化和自動化方面不斷取得進展。

We're confident in our goal of generating at least $250 million in savings, exiting 2025 and $1 billion, exiting 2027.

我們有信心實現這樣的目標：到 2025 年，我們至少可以節省 2.5 億美元；到 2027 年，我們至少可以節省 10 億美元。

Now, let's talk about the other two priorities that represent our future in enterprise digital networking.

現在，讓我們來談談代表企業數位網路未來的另外兩個優先事項。

Building the backbone for AI is all about ensuring we continue to widen our strategic moat. That is our expansive fiber network.

建構人工智慧的骨幹力量是為了確保我們繼續拓寬我們的戰略護城河。這就是我們廣泛的光纖網路。

As I explained last quarter, we're dramatically improving the utilization and therefore, the economic returns of our physical network, while simultaneously managing the largest network capacity expansion in generations.

正如我上個季度所解釋的那樣，我們正在大幅提高實體網路的利用率，從而提高其經濟回報，同時管理幾代以來最大的網路容量擴展。

By connecting all the major cloud and technology providers, we're creating a networking ecosystem that is accessible to all enterprises and provides ample high-speed capacity for the traffic growth from AI and other advanced technologies like quantum computing (inaudible).

透過連接所有主要的雲端和技術供應商，我們正在創建一個所有企業都可以存取的網路生態系統，並為人工智慧和量子運算等其他先進技術的流量成長提供充足的高速容量（聽不清楚）。

And we're progressing nicely with the construction of the $8.5 billion of private connectivity fabric or PCF projects that we announced last year. We have 57 different ILA sites under construction, on track to complete the first tranche of 24 locations on time and on budget in the second quarter.

我們去年宣布的價值 85 億美元的私人連接結構或 PCF 項目建設進展順利。我們有 57 個不同的 ILA 站點正在建設中，預計將在第二季度按時按預算完成第一批 24 個站點的建設。

We've also initiated deployment of the new Corning's 864-count fiber on seven different routes. And our modern world-class project management platform and controls continue to delight customers with on-time, on-budget delivery.

我們也開始在七條不同的路線上部署新的康寧 864 芯光纖。我們現代化的世界級專案管理平台和控制繼續以按時、按預算交付的方式讓客戶滿意。

We continue to be in discussions for the next tranche of PCF deals. And while the market is a bit uncertain, last night, you heard some of our partners confirming, on their earnings calls, their intention to continue to spend capital for their AI build-out.

我們將繼續討論下一批 PCF 交易。儘管市場有些不確定，但昨晚，您聽到我們的一些合作夥伴在他們的收益電話會議上確認，他們打算繼續為人工智慧建設投入資金。

From our view, we see that overall PCF demand is still there, at both a large-deal CST level, as well as at the smaller enterprise deal level. We anticipate that that trend will continue, as these networks are just critical infrastructure for the United States to be a world leader in AI.

從我們的角度來看，無論是在大型交易 CST 層面，還是在小型企業交易層面，整體 PCF 需求仍然存在。我們預計這種趨勢將會持續下去，因為這些網路是美國成為人工智慧世界領導者的關鍵基礎設施。

But as we've emphasized many times, Lumen's turnaround story has never just been about commercializing physical fiber and conduit. AI is forcing a pivotal shift in enterprise customer needs, driving unprecedented bandwidth demand for real-time data processing and secure uninterrupted access to critical business applications.

但正如我們多次強調的那樣，Lumen 的扭虧為盈故事從來不僅僅是關於實體光纖和管道的商業化。人工智慧正在迫使企業客戶需求發生重大轉變，推動即時資料處理和關鍵業務應用程式安全不間斷存取的頻寬需求空前高漲。

The network ecosystem I just described provides the key ingredients to deliver huge value to customers. And that value will come in the form of disrupting traditional cloud connect models with new architectures.

我剛剛描述的網路生態系統提供了向客戶創造巨大價值的關鍵要素。這種價值將以新架構顛覆傳統雲端連結模型的形式實現。

As we've discussed, Traditional cloud connections to enterprises rely on space and cross-connects provided by third-party intermediaries or carrier-neutral facilities.

正如我們所討論的，傳統的雲端與企業的連接依賴第三方中介機構或營運商中立設施提供的空間和交叉連接。

We've leveraged our network ecosystem to reinvent cloud connection with direct fiber access: the ability to connect directly from Lumen's fiber into the cloud providers. It not only simplifies network operations for us and our customers, it also significantly enhances network performance, security, and scalability.

我們利用我們的網路生態系統透過直接光纖接入重新發明了雲端連接：能夠從 Lumen 的光纖直接連接到雲端供應商。它不僅簡化了我們和客戶的網路操作，還顯著提高了網路效能、安全性和可擴展性。

Direct fiber access positions Lumen, uniquely, to deliver a differentiated connectivity experience, essential for the new business landscape.

直接光纖存取使 Lumen 具有獨特的優勢，可提供差異化的連接體驗，這對於新的商業格局至關重要。

A few weeks ago, we announced an important partnership with Google Cloud to provide direct fiber access to customer data centers, providing dedicated connectivity through Lumen's metro fiber, with speeds up to 400 gigabits per second.

幾週前，我們宣布與 Google Cloud 建立重要合作夥伴關係，為客戶資料中心提供直接光纖接入，透過 Lumen 的城域光纖提供專用連接，速度高達每秒 400 千兆位元。

We're also integrating with Google's new cloud WAN solution, helping customers reduce latency by more than 40% when connecting to SaaS applications, from a global footprint.

我們還與 Google 的新雲端 WAN 解決方案進行集成，幫助客戶從全球範圍將連接到 SaaS 應用程式時的延遲減少 40% 以上。

Both of these initiatives will lead to faster deployments, enhancing performance and reliability and cost savings, as customers deploy AI asset scale.

隨著客戶部署人工智慧資產規模，這兩項措施都將加快部署速度，提高效能和可靠性並節省成本。

And as I shared before, the network ecosystem and direct fiber access capabilities provide Lumen with a unique opportunity to go after a net new rapidly growing $15 billion TAM.

正如我之前所分享的，網路生態系統和直接光纖存取能力為 Lumen 提供了一個獨特的機會，可以追逐快速增長的 150 億美元淨新 TAM。

Okay. Enough geeking out on the physical infrastructure and network architectures piece. Let's move on to the digital layer of our transformation.

好的。關於實體基礎設施和網路架構的部分已經討論得足夠多了。讓我們繼續討論轉型的數位化層面。

We continue to increase adoption velocity on the Lumen Digital platform, giving customers Network-as-a-Service offerings that deliver real-time on-demand connectivity, with the ability to control bandwidth latency and security, all wrapped in a cloud-style consumption model.

我們持續提高 Lumen Digital 平台的採用速度，為客戶提供網路即服務產品，提供即時按需連接，並能夠控制頻寬延遲和安全性，所有這些都包含在雲端消費模式中。

It's another major industry disruptor and a huge business model shift for Lumen. And it deserves the double-click that I'm going to provide you today.

這是另一個重大的產業顛覆者，也是 Lumen 的巨大的商業模式轉變。它值得我今天為你們提供的雙擊。

The Lumen Digital platform transforms the economics of our business by freeing us from the physical limitations of traditional telecom infrastructure in two important ways.

Lumen Digital 平台透過兩種重要方式將我們從傳統電信基礎設施的實體限制中解放出來，從而改變了我們業務的經濟狀況。

First, we're digitizing the entire customer life cycle, allowing customers to purchase provision and manage on-demand services through a unified customer experience, through Lumen Digital's control center. This not only delivers a dramatically improved CX compared to legacy telco models, it also drives massive operational efficiency for Lumen and our customers by automating every task and infusing it with AI.

首先，我們正在將整個客戶生命週期數位化，讓客戶能夠透過 Lumen Digital 的控制中心，以統一的客戶體驗購買供應並管理按需服務。與傳統電信模式相比，這不僅顯著改善了 CX，而且還透過自動化每項任務並註入人工智慧，為 Lumen 和我們的客戶帶來了巨大的營運效率。

Second, through the Lumen Digital platform, we've created a device we call the Fabric Port, acting as a bridge between our control center and the physical network. It allows customers to manage their network infrastructure digitally and remotely.

其次，透過 Lumen Digital 平台，我們創建了一個稱為 Fabric Port 的設備，作為我們的控制中心和實體網路之間的橋樑。它允許客戶以數位化和遠端方式管理他們的網路基礎設施。

Fabric Ports can support thousands of services per single port versus legacy architectures of one port per service, a major breakthrough in terms of driving scaled growth at a reduced marginal cost.

與每個服務一個連接埠的傳統架構相比，Fabric Ports 每個連接埠可以支援數千個服務，這在以較低的邊際成本推動規模成長方面是一個重大突破。

Together, Lumen Digital's control center and Fabric Port give us the new construct for Lumen's growth story. They allow our customers to dramatically simplify their infrastructure, reduce costs, and accelerate innovation, while providing Lumen a path to compounded revenue growth.

Lumen Digital 的控制中心和 Fabric Port 共同為我們建構了 Lumen 成長故事的新框架。它們使我們的客戶能夠大幅簡化其基礎設施、降低成本並加速創新，同時為 Lumen 提供複合收入成長的途徑。

We now have a clear path to deliver high-value cloud economics, at scale. Lumen's business model is no longer bounded by the traditional friction-filled limitations of telecom's physical infrastructure and analog business processes.

現在，我們已經有了一條清晰的途徑來大規模實現高價值的雲端經濟。Lumen 的商業模式不再受到傳統電信實體基礎設施和模擬業務流程的摩擦限制的束縛。

Instead, our growth will be fueled by our ability to deliver a comprehensive digital services portfolio, with a friction-free CX, aimed to serve enterprise needs in a multi-cloud AI-first world.

相反，我們的成長將由我們提供全面數位服務組合的能力所推動，該組合具有無摩擦的 CX，旨在滿足多雲 AI 優先世界中的企業需求。

We'll grow the portfolio of digital offerings by both building and acquiring capabilities to sell in our growing installed base of Fabric Ports. And we've got a great start, as I'm going to share now.

我們將透過建造和獲取在不斷增長的 Fabric Ports 安裝基礎上銷售的能力來擴大數位產品組合。我們已經有了一個好的開端，我現在就來分享一下。

I want to introduce you to something we call Lumen Connectivity Fabric or LCF: a portfolio of digital network services made to help connect people, data, and applications quickly, securely, and effortlessly.

我想向您介紹我們稱為 Lumen Connectivity Fabric 或 LCF 的東西：這是一組數位網路服務，旨在幫助快速、安全、輕鬆地連接人員、資料和應用程式。

We have five main customer solution areas, including connectivity, infrastructure, security, media and entertainment, and the communication services. You can see our flagship NaaS services, Internet On-Demand, and Ethernet On-Demand in the connectivity services' customer solution area, with more to be launched over the coming quarters.

我們有五個主要的客戶解決方案領域，包括連接、基礎設施、安全、媒體和娛樂以及通訊服務。您可以在連接服務的客戶解決方案區域看到我們的旗艦 NaaS 服務、互聯網按需服務和乙太網路按需服務，未來幾季還將推出更多服務。

Now, one area where we see enormous potential is in voice cloud services. We began a limited offering of the Lumen Cloud Communications platform this year. We'll call it LCC for short.

現在，我們看到的一個具有巨大潛力的領域是語音雲端服務。我們今年開始限量提供 Lumen 雲端通訊平台。我們簡稱它為 LCC。

It's a comprehensive group of products that we believe will be unmatched in the broader unified communications and collaboration market, all powered by Lumen's extensive network assets, including our more than 130 million telephone numbers.

這是一組綜合性的產品，我們相信它在更廣泛的統一通訊和協作市場中將是無與倫比的，所有產品均由 Lumen 廣泛的網路資產提供支持，包括我們超過 1.3 億個電話號碼。

While we have offered VoIP and UCaaS products before, they were sold as single-point products with limited go-to-market support from the company. Moving forward, we believe that with LCC and our network assets, we have a clear right to win in the $47 billion and growing cloud voice TAM with these products.

雖然我們之前提供過 VoIP 和 UCaaS 產品，但它們是作為單點產品出售的，並且公司提供的市場支援有限。展望未來，我們相信，憑藉 LCC 和我們的網路資產，我們完全有權利憑藉這些產品贏得 470 億美元且不斷增長的雲端語音 TAM。

LCC provides Lumen legacy voice customers with a clear migration path; and therefore, help spend the declining revenue curve by reducing churn. What's more? Our cloud voice product is built on an IP network, which is far less expensive than the old POX infrastructure and well suited for the demands of remote hybrid workforce.

LCC為Lumen傳統語音客戶提供了清晰的遷移路徑；因此，透過減少客戶流失來幫助緩解收入下降的曲線。還有什麼？我們的雲端語音產品建立在 IP 網路上，比舊的 POX 基礎設施便宜得多，非常適合遠端混合勞動力的需求。

Voice has shifted to an API-driven, AI-infused, data-rich services-oriented market, creating higher value opportunities like specialty lines for fire alarms and security systems. And with Lumen's modern voice offering, customers can gain national reach on a cloud consumption experience.

語音已經轉向 API 驅動、AI 注入、數據豐富的服務導向的市場，創造了更高價值的機會，例如火災警報和安全系統的專業線路。透過 Lumen 的現代化語音服務，客戶可以在全國各地享受雲端消費體驗。

And this is just one example of how we're simplifying and modernizing our product portfolio to take advantage of the new business construct, layering multiple services onto fabric ports managed by Lumen Digital.

這只是我們如何簡化和現代化我們的產品組合以利用新業務結構的一個例子，將多種服務分層到由 Lumen Digital 管理的結構連接埠上。

We measure success in this digital business through adoption: specifically how many new customers we acquire, how many new fabric ports they ,buy and how many services they're layering on those ports.

我們透過採用來衡量這項數位業務的成功：具體來說，我們獲得了多少新客戶，他們購買了多少新的結構端口以及他們在這些端口上分層了多少服務。

And in the 90 days of Q1, we saw new Lumen Digital customers grow by 23% quarter over quarter. And in the same period, we saw a 26% uptick in the number of new Fabric Ports provisioned and managed through the Lumen Digital platform. As customers adopt this new model for wide area networks, we expect the new port growth rate to accelerate.

在第一季的 90 天內，我們看到 Lumen Digital 的新客戶數量較上季增加了 23%。在同一時期，我們發現透過 Lumen Digital 平台配置和管理的新 Fabric 連接埠數量增加了 26%。隨著客戶採用這種新的廣域網路模式，我們預期新連接埠的成長率將會加快。

And., lastly, the number of services sold across these customers and Fabric Ports grew by 29% in the same quarter-over-quarter period. That's the P&Q of our new digital networking business.

最後，這些客戶和 Fabric Ports 所銷售的服務數量在同一季度環比增加了 29%。這就是我們新的數位網路業務的 P&Q。

And, as side note: we've been deploying Fabric Port's technology for a while, before the advent of the Lumen Digital platform. And as such, we're investigating the opportunity to connect existing installed base Fabric Ports into control center, which would yield a large base of sockets to upsell our new LCF services. We'll keep you posted as this would be a major accelerator to our digital adoption and ultimately, revenue growth.

另外，附註：在 Lumen Digital 平台出現之前，我們已經部署 Fabric Port 的技術已經有一段時間了。因此，我們正在研究將現有已安裝的基礎 Fabric 連接埠連接到控制中心的機會，這將產生大量插座，以推銷我們的新 LCF 服務。我們會隨時向您通報情況，因為這將成為我們數位應用和最終收入成長的重要加速器。

It's an exciting time for Lumen. The transformation is going really well, with our operational rigor delivering sound financials. But what's more? We've created a growth engine called Lumen Digital that not only harnesses the power of our world-renowned fiber network, it provides a springboard for innovation that helps CIOs navigate a complicated set of problems in this multi-cloud AI-first world.

對於 Lumen 來說，這是一個令人興奮的時刻。轉型進展順利，我們嚴謹的營運帶來了穩健的財務狀況。但還有什麼呢？我們創建了一個名為 Lumen Digital 的成長引擎，它不僅利用了我們世界知名的光纖網路的力量，還提供了創新的跳板，幫助 CIO 解決這個多雲 AI 優先世界中的一系列複雜問題。

With that, I'll turn the call over to Chris.

說完這些，我會把電話轉給克里斯。

Thanks, Kate.

謝謝，凱特。

Lumen is having a great start to 2025, as we focus on our core strategic goals to drive operational excellence, build the backbone for AI, and cloudify telecom.

Lumen 在 2025 年取得了良好的開端，因為我們專注於我們的核心策略目標，即推動卓越營運、建立 AI 骨幹和雲端化電信。

Financially, we're encouraged by the trends we're seeing, despite uncertainty in the broader macro environment. Many of our initiatives are things we can control, like our modernization and simplification, cloudification of our services ordering and delivery platforms, and continued execution on the build-out of the $8.5 billion in PCF contracts we've signed to date.

從財務角度來看，儘管宏觀環境存在不確定性，但我們對所看到的趨勢感到鼓舞。我們的許多措施都是我們可以控制的，例如我們的現代化和簡化、服務訂購和交付平台的雲端化，以及繼續執行迄今為止我們已簽署的價值 85 億美元的 PCF 合約。

The work we're doing inside Lumen to improve our cost structure, product portfolio, and go-to-market need to happen regardless of external conditions and positions us to be more efficient and improve the overall customer experience.

我們在 Lumen 內部所做的工作是為了改善我們的成本結構、產品組合和市場進入，無論外部條件如何，這都使我們更有效率並改善整體客戶體驗。

All of this provides us with confidence in our ability to reach our goals.

所有這些都讓我們對實現目標的能力充滿信心。

During the quarter, we continued to improve our balance sheet, with the March refinancing of $2.4 billion in term loans. This transaction reduces our annual interest expense by approximately $55 million and extends the loan maturity from '29 and '30 to 2032. This refinancing is a key milestone in fortifying Lumen's balance sheet and free cash flow profile.

本季度，我們繼續改善資產負債表，3 月對 24 億美元的定期貸款進行了再融資。此交易使我們的年度利息支出減少了約 5,500 萬美元，並將貸款期限從 2029 年和 2030 年延長至 2032 年。此次再融資是加強 Lumen 資產負債表和自由現金流狀況的一個重要里程碑。

The significant interest savings is the first step of many to improve our cost of capital, reduce our leverage, normalize our maturity profile, and dramatically simplify our capital structure.

大幅節省利息是我們改善資本成本、降低槓桿率、規範到期情況和大幅簡化資本結構的眾多措施中的第一步。

We secured better loan terms, in part, because of our recent credit rating upgrades by Moody's and S&P Global, who recognize the AI-driven demand for Lumen PCF and our stable outlook.

我們獲得了更好的貸款條款，部分原因是穆迪和標準普爾在全球最近提高了我們的信用評級，他們認識到人工智慧驅動的對 Lumen PCF 的需求以及我們的穩定前景。

Based on our great start to 2025 in both our core connectivity business and in our modernization and simplification program, we have confidence in our margin expansion and total EBITDA returning to full-year growth in 2026 and growing thereafter.

基於我們在 2025 年核心連接業務以及現代化和簡化計劃方面的良好開端，我們有信心我們的利潤率擴張和總 EBITDA 將在 2026 年恢復全年增長，並在此後繼續增長。

We believe the value creation path for Lumen is clear through increased sales, balance sheet improvements, and cost structure optimization. We're excited about our start to 2025 and the progress we're making on our core strategic goals.

我們相信，透過增加銷售額、改善資產負債表和優化成本結構，Lumen 的價值創造路徑是清晰的。我們對 2025 年的開始以及我們在核心策略目標上的進展感到非常興奮。

Now, let's turn to a discussion of our financial results for the quarter.

現在，讓我們來討論一下本季的財務表現。

Total reported revenue declined 3.3% to $3.182 billion. Business Segment revenue declined 2.6% to $2.524 billion and the Mass Market segment revenue declined 5.9% to $658 million.

總報告收入下降 3.3% 至 31.82 億美元。商業部門收入下降 2.6% 至 25.24 億美元，大眾市場部門收入下降 5.9% 至 6.58 億美元。

Adjusted EBITDA was $929 million, with a 29.2% margin. And free cash flow was $354 million.

調整後的 EBITDA 為 9.29 億美元，利潤率為 29.2%。自由現金流為3.54億美元。

Next, I'll review our detailed revenue results for the quarter on a year-over-year basis.

接下來，我將回顧本季與去年同期的詳細收入結果。

Within our North American enterprise channel, which is in our Business Segment -- excluding Wholesale, International & Other -- revenue declined by 1.7%.

在我們的北美企業通路中（屬於我們的業務部門 - 不包括批發、國際和其他業務），收入下降了 1.7%。

North American enterprise Grow revenue increased 9.9% year over year, driven by Large Enterprise and Public Sector growth, with continued pressure in Nurture and Harvest product revenues.

受大型企業和公共部門成長的推動，北美企業成長收入年增 9.9%，而培育和收穫產品收入則持續承壓。

Overall, the North American business declined 2.2%.

整體而言，北美業務下降了2.2%。

On a year-over-year basis, Large Enterprise revenue declined 3.7% in the first quarter and Mid-Market revenue declined approximately 11.1%. In Large Enterprise and Mid-Markets, Grow revenue was up 10.1% and 1.2%, respectively, offset by Nurture and Harvest.

與去年同期相比，第一季大型企業收入下降 3.7%，中型市場收入下降約 11.1%。在大型企業和中型市場，Grow 收入分別成長 10.1% 和 1.2%，但被 Nurture 和 Harvest 收入所抵消。

Public sector revenue grew 14.7% year over year. And as we've said in the past, public sector revenue can be lumpy quarter to quarter; but we continue to see traction with large bookings in this space, which take time to ramp to revenue.

公共部門營收年增14.7%。正如我們過去所說，公共部門的收入每季之間可能會有波動；但我們繼續看到該領域大量預訂的吸引力，這需要時間才能增加收入。

With respect to 2025 and as a result of significant rerating in the Wholesale TDM space, from select smaller off-net connectivity providers, we're working with our customers to either migrate or disconnect some services. While these actions will be a drag on Public Sector revenue in the first half of the year, we believe they are healthy for the overall business, as we're making decisions that are EBITDA- and margin-accretive.

就 2025 年而言，由於批發 TDM 領域的重大重新評級，從選定的較小的離網連​​接提供者開始，我們正在與客戶合作，遷移或斷開某些服務。雖然這些措施將拖累上半年公共部門的收入，但我們認為，這些措施對整體業務來說是健康的，因為我們正在做出有利於 EBITDA 和利潤率成長的決策。

Wholesale revenue declined approximately 3.6% year over year. The Harvest portion of the Wholesale portfolio, which is comprised of voice and private line, saw revenue contraction by 5.8% year over year in the first quarter.

批發收入較去年同期下降約3.6%。批發業務組合中的 Harvest 部分（由語音和專線組成）第一季的營收年減了 5.8%。

This is primarily driven by telco partners that are selling legacy services. Our Harvest product revenue will likely continue to decline over time and is an area we'll manage for cash.

這主要是由銷售傳統服務的電信合作夥伴所推動的。我們的 Harvest 產品收入可能會隨著時間的推移而持續下降，這是我們將管理現金的一個領域。

Nurture revenue was down 7.8% in the first quarter on VPN and Ethernet declines. And Wholesale Grow revenue was positive 1.9%.

由於 VPN 和乙太網路的下滑，Nurture 第一季的營收下降了 7.8%。批發種植收入成長了 1.9%。

International & Other revenue declined 11.3% or $11 million, driven primarily by VPN declines. As a reminder, our International & Other revenue base was reduced due to the EMEA transaction, which closed on November 1, 2023.

國際及其他收入下降 11.3% 或 1,100 萬美元，主要原因是 VPN 收入下降。提醒一下，由於 2023 年 11 月 1 日完成的 EMEA 交易，我們的國際及其他收入基礎有所減少。

Moving to our business and product life cycle reporting, I'll reference the results based on our North American enterprise channel.

前往我們的業務和產品生命週期報告，我將參考基於北美企業通路的結果。

The 1.7% year-over-year decrease was due to declines in Nurture and Harvest, offset by strength in Grow, particularly non-PCF dark fiber, waves, and IP. While results can vary in any quarter, we expect sustained growth in the Grow product revenue, as we execute on our core turnaround.

年減 1.7% 是由於培育和收穫業務的下滑，但被成長業務（尤其是非 PCF 暗光纖、波和 IP）的強勁成長所抵消。雖然每季的結果都會有所不同，但隨著我們核心業務扭虧為盈的實施，我們預計 Grow 產品收入將持續成長。

Within North American enterprise channels, Grow products revenue increased 9.9% year over year, down from 15.3% year over year in the fourth quarter, due to the timing of large contracts within Public Sector.

在北美企業通路，由於公共部門大額合約的時機原因，Grow 產品營收年增 9.9%，低於第四季的 15.3%。

Grow now represents over 48% of total North American enterprise revenue. Almost half; and for our total Business segment, carried an approximate 77% direct margin this quarter.

目前，Grow 佔北美企業總收入的 48% 以上。幾乎一半；就我們整個業務部門而言，本季的直接利潤率約為 77%。

Nurture products' revenue decreased 16.6% year over year, largely impacted by declines in VPN. Nurture represents approximately 26% of our North American enterprise revenue; and for our total Business segment, carried an approximate 61% direct margin this quarter.

Nurture 產品的營收年減 16.6%，主要受到 VPN 下滑的影響。培育業務約占我們北美企業收入的 26%；就我們的整個業務部門而言，本季的直接利潤率約為 61%。

Harvest product revenue decreased 9.8% year over year and continues to be negatively impacted by declines in TDM-based voice. Harvest represented approximately 16% of our North American enterprise revenue in the first quarter. For our total Business segment, it carried an approximate 69% direct margin this quarter.

Harvest 產品收入年減 9.8%，並繼續受到基於 TDM 的語音下降的負面影響。Harvest 約占我們第一季北美企業營收的 16%。就我們的整個業務部門而言，本季的直接利潤率約為 69%。

Other product revenue increased 8.4% year over year. As a reminder, Other product revenue tends to experience fluctuations, due to the variable nature of these products.

其他產品收入較去年同期成長8.4%。提醒一下，由於這些產品的多變性質，其他產品的收入往往會出現波動。

Now, moving on to mass markets. Our team continues to do a terrific job of building fiber-to-the-home and adding new subscribers and providing great service to existing customers.

現在，轉向大眾市場。我們的團隊繼續出色地完成光纖到戶建設、增加新用戶以及為現有客戶提供優質服務的工作。

Our Fiber Broadband revenue grew 22.9% year over year and now represents 45% of Mass Markets' broadband revenue.

我們的光纖寬頻營收年增 22.9%，目前佔大眾市場寬頻收入的 45%。

During the quarter, Lumen added 101,000 fiber-enabled homes, bringing our total to approximately 4.3 million, as of March 31. We also added 39,000 Quantum Fiber customers, bringing fiber subs to over 1.1 million. Fiber ARPU was $64.

在本季度，Lumen 增加了 101,000 個光纖家庭，截至 3 月 31 日，總數達到約 430 萬個。我們還增加了 39,000 名 Quantum Fiber 客戶，使光纖用戶數超過 110 萬。光纖 ARPU 為 64 美元。

At the end of the first quarter, our penetration of legacy copper broadband was approximately 8% and our Quantum Fiber penetration stood at approximately 26%.

截至第一季末，我們的傳統銅寬頻普及率約為 8%，量子光纖普及率約為 26%。

Now, turning to adjusted EBITDA. For the first quarter of '25, adjusted EBITDA was $929 million, compared to $977 million in the year ago quarter. For the first quarter of 2025, our adjusted EBITDA margin was 29.2%. EBITDA margins declined 50 basis points year over year, compared to a 40 basis points year-over-year increase in the fourth quarter.

現在，我們來談談調整後的 EBITDA。25 年第一季度，調整後的 EBITDA 為 9.29 億美元，而去年同期為 9.77 億美元。2025 年第一季度，我們的調整後 EBITDA 利潤率為 29.2%。EBITDA 利潤率年減 50 個基點，而第四季則較去年同期成長 40 個基點。

Special items impacting adjusted EBITDA totaled $99 million. This includes severance, transaction and separation costs, and our modernization and simplification initiatives.

影響調整後 EBITDA 的特殊項目總計 9,900 萬美元。其中包括遣散費、交易費和分離成本，以及我們的現代化和簡化措施。

Lastly, capital expenditures were $791 million. Free cash flow, excluding special items, was $354 million. And as a reminder: we expect free cash flow to be lumpy quarter to quarter, as we move through the large PCF builds.

最後，資本支出為 7.91 億美元。不包括特殊項目在內的自由現金流為 3.54 億美元。需要提醒的是：隨著 PCF 的大幅增加，我們預計自由現金流每季都會出現波動。

Now, as we look at the outlook for '25, we're reiterating our EBITDA guidance of $3.2 billion to $3.4 billion.

現在，當我們展望 25 年的前景時，我們重申 32 億美元至 34 億美元的 EBITDA 預期。

First-quarter EBITDA results were above expectations. And we feel it's prudent to continue evaluating the evolving macroeconomic landscape, before considering increasing our guidance.

第一季 EBITDA 結果超出預期。我們認為，在考慮提高指導方針之前，繼續評估不斷變化的宏觀經濟狀況是明智之舉。

We've had a strong start to '25. But it's still early in the year. And as we gather more information, we'll adjust as needed.

2025 年我們有一個好的開始。但現在還只是年初。隨著我們收集到更多信息，我們會根據需要進行調整。

As a reminder, our EBITDA guidance includes organic decline similar to 2024 and roughly $200 million in incremental costs, included in the annualized spend associated with building the team to expand and deliver on the PCF partnerships -- the proactive disconnects of uneconomical legacy services and additional investments in cloud infrastructure to reduce future CapEx associated with utilizing our own data center assets.

提醒一下，我們的 EBITDA 指引包括與 2024 年類似的有機下降和約 2 億美元的增量成本，其中包括與組建團隊以擴展和實現 PCF 合作夥伴關係相關的年度支出——主動斷開不經濟的遺留服務以及對雲端基礎設施的額外投資，以減少與利用我們自己的數據中心資產相關的未來資本支出。

Excluded from the EBITDA guidance is roughly $300 million in transformation costs to begin the multi-year task of reducing expenses by $1 billion.

EBITDA 指引中不包括約 3 億美元的轉型成本，以開始為期多年的削減 10 億美元開支的任務。

As we stated in our last call, we estimate 2026 EBITDA will be greater than $3.5 billion. Our estimates are based on anticipated improvements in sales performance, lower absolute declines in the legacy products, and $250 million in run rate savings exiting 2025.

正如我們在上次電話會議中所述，我們預計 2026 年 EBITDA 將超過 35 億美元。我們的估計是基於預期的銷售業績改善、傳統產品的絕對下降幅度降低以及 2025 年後 2.5 億美元的運行率節省。

And as such, we have confidence in margin expansion and total EBITDA returning to full-year growth in 2026 and growing thereafter.

因此，我們有信心利潤率和總 EBITDA 將在 2026 年恢復全年成長，並在此後繼續成長。

Lastly, before we take your questions, I'd like to address recent rumors around the sale of our Consumer Fiber business.

最後，在回答您的問題之前，我想先談談最近有關出售我們的消費光纖業務的傳言。

While we will not comment, directly, on the details of the rumors, we've been very consistent in saying we're proud of the Consumer Fiber platform we've built but the investment and return profile are not consistent with our desire to focus on the enterprise connectivity and services market.

雖然我們不會直接評論謠言的細節，但我們一直非常一致地表示，我們為我們建立的消費者光纖平台感到自豪，但投資和回報狀況與我們專注於企業連接和服務市場的願望不一致。

We have no news to report now. But we will update the market, when it's appropriate to do so.

目前我們還沒有新聞可以報道。但我們會在適當的時候更新市場。

In summary, we're off to a great start to the year, as we challenge the norms of traditional legacy telecom through the transformation of Lumen's financials, network assets, and service delivery platforms.

總而言之，我們今年有一個良好的開端，透過 Lumen 的財務、網路資產和服務交付平台的轉型，我們挑戰了傳統電信的規範。

We believe our innovation will lead to new revenue streams that satisfy the needs of customers in today's multi-cloud AI environment, while the transformation of Lumen leads to leverage and cost of capital reductions and cost structure optimization.

我們相信，我們的創新將帶來新的收入來源，滿足當今多雲AI環境中客戶的需求，而Lumen的轉型將帶來槓桿和資本成本的降低以及成本結構的最佳化。

We're excited about the path we're on and look forward to providing more updates, along our journey.

我們對所走的道路感到興奮，並期待在我們的旅途中提供更多更新。

We'll now take your questions.

我們現在來回答你們的問題。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員指示）

Michael Rollins, Citi.

花旗銀行的麥可‧羅林斯。

Two topics, if I could, please.

如果可以的話，請問有兩個主題。

First, on the Business revenue. Just curious if you could provide some additional context on the reasons that the Grow revenue was up 10% year over year during the first quarter, including how much may be coming from existing versus new customers? And can this bucket continue to sustain double-digit growth, as you look out over the next few quarters?

第一，關於業務收入。我只是好奇，您是否可以提供一些額外的背景信息，說明第一季 Grow 收入同比增長 10% 的原因，包括有多少來自現有客戶，有多少來自新客戶？展望未來幾季，這個數字還能繼續維持兩位數的成長嗎？

And then, just a second topic: you mentioned earlier some of the legacy TDM revenue that might need to come out. I'm just curious what happened to the what was anticipated to be front-end loaded during the first quarter, in terms of some of this churn, including within the public sector? And how much is left that may come out during the second quarter or the rest of this year?

然後，再說第二個主題：您之前提到了一些可能需要提取的遺留 TDM 收入。我只是好奇，就包括公共部門在內的一些客戶流失而言，預計第一季前端加載的情況如何？那麼，第二季或今年剩餘時間內可能發放多少資金呢？

It's Chris. So a couple of things.

是克里斯。有幾件事。

On the Grow revenue, we said that it was really driven by dark fiber deals that were not related to the $8.5 billion in PCF. So this is underlying demand from Large Enterprise, primarily; also, some in Public Sector, as well as Waves and IP. And in all of those areas, we do expect those trends to continue.

關於 Grow 收入，我們說它實際上是由與 85 億美元的 PCF 無關的暗光纖交易推動的。所以這主要是來自大型企業的潛在需求；還有一些在公共部門，以及 Waves 和 IP。在所有這些領域，我們確實預期這些趨勢將會持續下去。

Businesses are preparing themselves for the future of AI and our offering provides something that others are simply not providing. So we feel very good about that.

企業正在為人工智慧的未來做好準備，我們提供的產品是其他人無法提供的。因此我們對此感到非常高興。

And I think, importantly, the fact that that Grow bucket is now roughly half of what we sell is, I think, a key leading indicator to the fact that the end of revenue declines, we'll ultimately get to.

我認為，重要的是，現在「成長桶」大約占我們銷售額的一半，我認為，這是一個關鍵的領先指標，表明我們最終將結束收入下降的局面。

We've been very focused on this for some time. And this is really before the digital innovation, that Kate really leaned into today, starts to impact our results. So we feel very good about that.

一段時間以來，我們一直非常關注這個問題。這實際上是在凱特今天真正傾向的數位創新開始影響我們的結果之前。因此我們對此感到非常高興。

In terms of how much is new customers versus existing, I can't answer that off the top of my head. So I think we'll need to circle back on that one.

至於新客戶與現有客戶的數量有多少，我無法立即回答。所以我認為我們需要重新討論這個問題。

And then, as it relates to the disconnects, there was some activity in the first quarter. We're still working through the final arrangements on the balance of that. And we'll certainly provide some color through the quarter.

然後，由於它與斷開連接有關，第一季出現了一些活動。我們仍在就此問題做出最後的安排。我們肯定會在本季提供一些色彩。

The reality is, in total, I'm not too concerned about it because, from an EBITDA standpoint, it's at worst-case, neutral, and very likely a positive; and we will see margin improvements from that.

事實上，總的來說，我對此並不太擔心，因為從 EBITDA 的角度來看，在最壞的情況下，它也是中性的，而且很可能是積極的；我們將看到利潤率的提高。

Batya Levi, UBS.

巴蒂亞·列維（Batya Levi），瑞銀。

Can you provide, maybe, a little bit more color on how cloud economics is different from telco? And if you could like size the difference in margins for both worlds. I think that would be helpful to understand it.

您能否更詳細地解釋一下雲端經濟與電信經濟有何不同？如果您能衡量一下兩個世界的利潤差異。我認為這將有助於理解它。

And could some of the strategies that you're implementing on the cloud communications side could also be implemented on mass markets, maybe, to accelerate the profitability of that unit?

您在雲端通訊方面實施的一些策略是否也可以在大眾市場上實施，以加速該部門的獲利能力？

And just a quick follow-up on the fiber side. As you continue the strategic review, can you just remind us on how you would think about incremental fiber builds and if you're seeing any change in cost to both?

並快速跟進光纖方面的狀況。當您繼續進行策略審查時，您能否提醒我們，您如何看待增量光纖建設，以及您是否看到兩者的成本有任何變化？

Batya, it's Kate.

巴蒂亞，我是凱特。

The exciting part of the Lumen Digital platform is it enables what we're calling cloud economics because you get out of the linear revenue growth tied to the cost structure.

Lumen Digital 平台令人興奮的部分是它實現了我們所說的雲端經濟，因為您可以擺脫與成本結構掛鉤的線性收入成長。

The [SaaS] lies in two places. The first is in the Lumen Digital platform and the second is in the Fabric Port. And the two go together to make it possible to sell thousands of services on one port.

[SaaS] 位於兩個地方。第一個是在 Lumen Digital 平台，第二個是在 Fabric Port。兩者相結合，使得在一個端口上銷售數千種服務成為可能。

And in the old constructs, one port could only support one service. And a service typically needed origination and a termination point, right?

在舊的結構中，一個連接埠只能支援一種服務。服務通常需要起點和終點，對嗎？

So in the new construct, imagine: you have a customer that's running Internet On-Demand or Ethernet On-Demand on a Fabric Port, you can sell in voice cloud, you can sell in Lumen Defender; and you start layering in these digital services, on top of one port.

因此，在新的構造中，想像一下：您有一個客戶在 Fabric 端口上運行 Internet On-Demand 或以太網 On-Demand，您可以在語音雲中銷售，您可以在 Lumen Defender 中銷售；然後您就可以開始在一個端口上分層部署這些數字服務。

So revenue goes up and the marginal cost of delivering that revenue goes down. And that's the exciting part.

因此收入增加，而實現該收入的邊際成本下降。這就是令人興奮的部分。

It's early to call what that's going to look like. We're building out a digital platform. It's a traditional J-curve. We're delighted by the adoption progress, with how many customers are coming and how fast they're going from one to two and more ports. But it's probably early to make a call on the margin.

現在判斷未來會是什麼樣子還為時過早。我們正在建立一個數位平台。這是傳統的 J 曲線。我們對採用的進展感到高興，看到有這麼多客戶加入，而且他們從一個端口擴展到兩個甚至更多端口的速度非常快。但現在對利潤率做出判斷可能還為時過早。

And the back part of your question, I'll --

至於你問題的後面部分，我會--

Yeah. And on that, Batya, we will, as we move through the year and approach Investor Day in September. We'll give a lot more color on what that future looks like, including a new model, at that point.

是的。巴蒂亞，隨著今年的進展以及 9 月投資者日的臨近，我們將繼續努力。屆時，我們將對未來做出更多描述，包括新的模型。

But the early feedback from customers is incredibly positive.

但來自客戶的早期回饋卻非常正面。

On the additional builds, progressing really nicely. We're confident that we'll continue to see expansion there and the economics continue to look similar to what we saw in the first round.

在附加建置方面，進展非常順利。我們相信，我們將繼續看到那裡的擴張，而且經濟狀況將繼續與我們在第一輪看到的類似。

And the team is doing a fantastic job, as Kate said, of building on schedule, if not a little bit ahead, at this point and on budget. So very pleased with that motion.

正如凱特所說，團隊做得非常出色，他們按時完成了建設，甚至比現在提前了一點，而且沒有超出預算。我對這個動議非常滿意。

Jim Schneider, Goldman Sachs.

高盛的吉姆·施耐德。

Two, if I may.

如果可以的話，我想說兩個。

One is relative to the PCF pipeline. I'm just curious how you would expect the conversion of the remaining $3.5 billion of the pipeline to potentially roll in? And would you expect additional hyperscaler deals to precede enterprise deals? Or you think it could be a little bit more enterprise-loaded in the near term?

一個是相對於PCF管道而言的。我只是好奇，您認為剩餘的 35 億美元管道轉換資金將如何到位？您是否預計在企業交易之前會有更多的超大規模交易？或者您認為它在短期內可能會更適合企業？

And then, maybe, secondly, with respect to the overall enterprise spending environment, I believe in the FAQ, you referenced that you haven't seen any change to that, yet, relative to those more advanced fiber deals.

其次，關於整體企業支出環境，我相信在常見問題中，您提到，相對於那些更先進的光纖交易，您還沒有看到任何變化。

But could you, maybe, address the flip side of that? Typically, in times of budget pressure, enterprises consider decommissioning legacy servers a little bit faster than they might have otherwise. So I'm wondering if you see any potential for downside on that side of things.

但您能否談談這個問題的另一面？通常，在預算壓力時期，企業會比其他情況下更快地考慮淘汰舊式伺服器。所以我想知道您是否認為事情在這方面有任何潛在的不利因素。

It's Kate. Just a couple of things.

是凱特。僅舉幾例。

With respect to the pipeline, as I said, we are in active discussions with these customers. And the complication and the timing is around the notion that they're net new routes. It's complicated to design. And we work, side by side, with customers to make sure that we get it exactly right.

關於管道，正如我所說，我們正在與這些客戶進行積極討論。而複雜性和時機則圍繞著它們是全新路線的概念。設計起來很複雜。我們與客戶並肩工作，以確保我們做得完全正確。

But they're still progressing. We feel good about it. I can't give you a specific timeframe. But it's moving along.

但他們仍在進步。我們對此感覺很好。我無法給你一個具體的時間表。但它仍在前進。

What we're seeing is an increase in demand and interest around: both private connectivity [fabric], as well as our Lumen Connectivity Fabric for services from enterprises because what they're seeing is this unprecedented increase in volume of data generated from AI.

我們看到的是，人們對私有連結（結構）以及為企業提供的 Lumen 連結結構的需求和興趣都在增加，因為他們看到人工智慧產生的資料量出現了前所未有的成長。

And a lot of times, they got to get it from on-prem into the cloud or from cloud to cloud or back to the edge and every combination they're in.

很多時候，他們必須將資料從本地轉移到雲端，或從一個雲端轉移到另一個雲端，或是回到邊緣，以及他們所處的每一個組合。

And so, they're looking for a networking partner that can provide them not just the coverage and reach of the physical network, but a digital platform to make it easy to navigate in that multi-cloud AI world.

因此，他們正在尋找一個網路合作夥伴，不僅可以為他們提供實體網路的覆蓋範圍和影響力，還可以為他們提供一個數位平台，讓他們能夠在多雲 AI 世界中輕鬆導航。

And that's what we've built for them. So we're super excited that it's progressing and bullish on what this means.

這就是我們為他們建造的。因此，我們對它的進展感到非常興奮，並對其意義充滿信心。

I'll answer the third part of your question because it really speaks to -- fiber networking is critical infrastructure for us to build an AI economy in the United States and for us to be competitive on the innovation platform on a global level.

我將回答你問題的第三部分，因為它確實說明了——光纖網路是我們在美國建立人工智慧經濟以及在全球範圍內創新平台上保持競爭力的關鍵基礎設施。

And so, while there could be uncertainty in the market -- and nothing's recession-proof, per se. These are long-term strategic investments that customers have to make in order to compete.

因此，儘管市場可能存在不確定性——但從本質上來說，沒有任何東西可以抵禦經濟衰退。這些都是客戶為了競爭必須做出的長期策略投資。

And that's why we're continuing to progress because what we've got is what they need in order to live through that next phase of our technology diffusion life cycle.

這就是我們不斷進步的原因，因為我們所擁有的正是他們度過科技傳播生命週期下一階段所需要的東西。

Nick Del Deo, MoffettNathanson.

尼克·德爾·迪奧，莫菲特·內森森。

I had two.

我有兩個。

First, going back to Public Sector. Chris, last quarter, you had talked about some large payments you got from Middle Mile project in California that helped revenue there. Did something similar happen again this quarter? I'm just trying to get a bit of a better sense of the underlying trends there.

首先，回到公共部門。克里斯，上個季度，您談到了從加州的 Middle Mile 計畫獲得的一些大額付款，這些付款增加了那裡的收入。本季是否又發生類似的事情？我只是想更好地了解那裡的潛在趨勢。

And then, second, for Kate, how are you pricing some of the new services that you walked us through on the digital platform? Are you thinking that you're going to price at a discount because they're more efficient and easier to deliver? Or are you thinking about pricing at a premium because you think they're better products?

其次，對於凱特來說，您如何在數位平台上向我們介紹一些新服務並為其定價？您是否認為，由於它們更有效率、更易於交付，因此您會以折扣價出售？或者您是否考慮以溢價定價，因為您認為它們是更好的產品？

Yeah. First of all, no, there was no big step-up in the second quarter, as it relates to the timing of delivery around -- I think, in particular, what impacted us last quarter was the state of California delivery. That does get lumpy quarter to quarter. This quarter, it was a lot less than last quarter.

是的。首先，第二季度沒有出現大的成長，因為這與交付時間有關——我認為，特別是上個季度對我們影響最大的是加州的交付。每個季度之間，情況確實會有所不同。本季度，這一數字比上一季少了很多。

The reality is there is strength in the Public Sector space. We have a killer team. They're doing great work. And we continue to be engaged on multiple large-scale opportunities. And so, I think Public Sector is going to continue to be a point of strength for us.

事實是，公共部門領域實力雄厚。我們有一支殺手團隊。他們做得很好。我們將繼續致力於多個大型機會。因此，我認為公共部門將繼續成為我們的優勢。

And Kate --

還有凱特--

Yeah. Sure. Regarding pricing of services on the Lumen Digital platform, I'm so glad you asked because this is a really important point.

是的。當然。關於 Lumen Digital 平台上服務的定價，我很高興您問這個問題，因為這是一個非常重要的問題。

I think in the old world of telecommunications, people refer to our physical network, though it was deeply insulting, as dumb pipes. And those days are long gone.

我認為在舊的電信世界中，人們將我們的實體網路稱為“啞管道”，儘管這非常具有侮辱性。而那些日子早已一去不復返了。

We have a digital platform that we can use to really make things easier to consume for customers in a really complex hybrid architecture that they're navigating through every day.

我們有一個數位平台，可以讓客戶在他們每天都要瀏覽的非常複雜的混合架構中更輕鬆地使用產品。

And our orientation is around total value of ownership. And this is really important because if we can actually help customers build higher-performing, lower-latency, more secure, larger-capacity networks, that helps them execute their business outcomes better. They have faster innovation, faster time to revenue, et cetera.

我們的定位是圍繞所有權的總價值。這非常重要，因為如果我們能夠真正幫助客戶建立效能更高、延遲更低、更安全、容量更大的網絡，這將有助於他們更好地實現業務成果。他們擁有更快的創新速度、更快的獲利時間等等。

If we can also, at the same time, lower cost like, for example, bypassing cross-connects of third parties, when trying to connect between clouds or from data center to cloud, this delivers more value. So we can help them on the top line. And we can help them on the bottom line.

如果我們同時還能降低成本，例如在嘗試在雲端之間或從資料中心到雲端進行連接時繞過第三方的交叉連接，這將帶來更大的價值。因此我們可以在收入方面為他們提供幫助。我們可以從根本上幫助他們。

And that doesn't mean we drop the price of our service. That means our service is inherently more valued and there's no more price-our-way-to-the-bottom, in competition with other providers.

但這並不意味著我們會降低服務價格。這意味著我們的服務本質上更有價值，並且在與其他供應商的競爭中，我們不再採取壓價策略。

We feel like we've got real value here. And our adoption metrics are showing it.

我們覺得我們在這裡獲得了真正的價值。我們的採用指標也顯示了這一點。

Greg Williams, TD Cowen.

格雷格威廉斯 (Greg Williams)，TD Cowen。

Just two questions.

僅兩個問題。

One, I think you noted CapEx is $791 million. It sounds like it's going to ramp up pretty fast. And I know, Chris, you mentioned free cash flow could be lumpy. But can you help us, in a sense, of the cadence of the CapEx spend through the balance of the year?

首先，我想您注意到資本支出為 7.91 億美元。聽起來它會很快上升。我知道，克里斯，你提到自由現金流可能會不穩定。但是，從某種意義上說，您能幫助我們了解全年資本支出的節奏嗎？

And same question on the upfront hyperscale fees that you get. That would help.

關於您獲得的前期超大規模費用，也有同樣的問題。那會有幫助的。

Second question, just around Public Sector. You noted it was a point of strength, which sounds encouraging because the question I have is: Are you seeing any risk on the DOGE efficiency cuts in the sector? You noted Public could be strong. But a few of your peers noted some pressure from government cuts.

第二個問題，關於公部門。您指出這是一個優勢，這聽起來令人鼓舞，因為我的問題是：您是否認為 DOGE 效率削減會給該行業帶來任何風險？您指出公眾可能很強大。但您的一些同行注意到政府削減開支帶來了一些壓力。

Yeah. I'll answer the first part. We really don't want to get into the timing of inflows and outflows quarter by quarter. We're really confident in the annual guidance, which would obviously suggest that on the CapEx spend side, that you will see a ramp-up.

是的。我來回答第一部分。我們確實不想逐季討論資金流入和流出的時間。我們對年度指導非常有信心，這顯然表明在資本支出方面，你會看到成長。

It is really volatile quarter to quarter, in terms of the timing of payments. We're dealing with major network components that can move by hundreds of millions of dollars quarter to quarter.

就付款時間而言，每季的波動確實很大。我們正在處理主要的網路組件，這些組件每季的變動金額可能高達數億美元。

So trying to predict, effectively, to get the quarters, you got to get to weeks and days. And the reality is just not that predictable.

因此，要有效地預測季度，就必須獲得周數和天數。但現實卻並非如此可預測。

But, in total, we feel very good about the guidance for the year. And then --

但總體而言，我們對今年的指導感到非常滿意。進而--

Yeah. Regarding the impact of DOGE in the Public Sector market, look, what we're seeing is that this administration is very committed to modernization and simplification. And they're trying to reduce costs and enable the United States to be more competitive in the various global theaters.

是的。關於 DOGE 對公共部門市場的影響，我們看到的是，本屆政府非常致力於現代化和簡化。他們正在努力降低成本，使美國在全球各個戰場上更具競爭力。

And that presents a huge opportunity for our company, given our network and the platform that we're building on it.

考慮到我們的網路和我們正在建立的平台，這為我們公司帶來了巨大的機會。

And also, there's a pretty significant return-to-office trend that's delivering near-term opportunities, as well.

此外，重返辦公室的趨勢也相當明顯，這也帶來了近期的機會。

So all in all, we are pretty bullish in the Public Sector space, as well.

總而言之，我們對公共部門領域也非常看好。

Frank Louthan, Raymond James.

法蘭克洛森、雷蒙詹姆斯。

More color on your NaaS product. How are you differentiating yourself in the market with that and what traction you're getting there?

為您的 NaaS 產品增添更多色彩。您如何利用這一點在市場上脫穎而出，並獲得什麼樣的吸引力？

And then, secondly, one more clarification on the Public Sector. Can you give us some color on the weakness you referenced? Is it going to be weaker, relative to what you reported this quarter? Or, going forward, from this level? How should we think about it?

其次，再對公共部門作出一點澄清。您能否向我們詳細解釋一下您提到的弱點？相對於本季報告的情況，它會變得更弱嗎？或者，從這個層面繼續前進？我們該如何思考這個問題？

Frank, you cut out. We didn't hear the first part of your question. I'll let Chris answer the second part. But what was the first part?

法蘭克，你別再說了。我們沒有聽到你問題的第一部分。我讓克里斯回答第二部分。但第一部分是什麼？

The first part of the question was around the connectivity fabric, the NaaS product. How are you differentiating that in the industry? Who's buying that product? Where are you finding traction with that in the market?

問題的第一部分是關於連接結構，即 NaaS 產品。您如何在產業中實現差異化？誰在購買該產品？您在哪裡發現市場上有這種吸引力？

Interestingly enough, there's a couple of things. The NaaS product in market doesn't have a like-for-like competitor.

有趣的是，有幾件事。市場上的NaaS產品沒有類似的競爭對手。

So there are digital companies that don't own the network. And so, they can't integrate the platform capabilities into the fiber. And then, there are networking companies that aren't building a digital platform.

所以有些數位公司並不擁有網路。因此，他們無法將平台功能整合到光纖中。還有一些網路公司沒有建構數位平台。

And as you know, we've got a pretty big competitive or strategic moat with our physical network. It's got scale coverage, unique routes, huge capacity with room to grow.

如您所知，我們的實體網路擁有相當大的競爭或戰略護城河。它具有規模覆蓋、獨特路線、巨大容量和增長空間。

And the major CSPs are all now connected to it. And so, we've got this ecosystem.

目前主要的 CSP 均已與其連接。所以，我們有了這個生態系統。

And the digital platform, itself, is starting to bring customers who just want an easier experience. They want to not have the old experience of static point-to-point and long ordering cycles and all that kind of stuff.

而數位平臺本身也開始吸引那些只想要更輕鬆體驗的客戶。他們不想再經歷靜態點對點、長訂購週期等舊有的體驗。

They want to fire up any port, any service, anytime, anywhere because that's what they get with cloud. That's their expectation. And they can get that on the Lumen Digital platform.

他們希望隨時隨地啟動任何連接埠、任何服務，因為這就是雲端所能實現的。這是他們的期望。他們可以在 Lumen Digital 平台上獲得這些資訊。

And I think there's a third piece: you put all these together with some of the other announcements we've made. Direct fiber access into the cloud, direct fiber access between prem locations, and edge,. and data centers is very unique and it's something that we're excited about because it's going to continue to improve performance of our network and further separate us from any other company that tries to compete.

我認為還有第三部分：將所有這些與我們發布的其他一些公告放在一起。透過光纖直接連接雲端、透過光纖直接接入 prem 位置和邊緣。和資料中心非常獨特，我們對此感到興奮，因為它將繼續提高我們網路的效能，並進一步將我們與任何其他試圖競爭的公司區分開來。

And on Public Sector, Frank, I think the reality is what we're seeing, in terms of both opportunity and booking trends, is very strong performance out of the Public Sector team.

關於公共部門，弗蘭克，我認為現實情況是，就機會和預訂趨勢而言，我們看到公共部門團隊的表現非常強勁。

I don't want to try to predict what that means, in terms of the performance this quarter versus where we end up next quarter.

我不想試圖預測這意味著什麼，就本季的表現和下個季度的表現而言。

I think, in the end, the impact of this -- is off-net piece -- is one, we will obviously share what it is when we get there; but it's not going to have an impact on bottom line and we'll isolate what that impact is when we make the changes in the second quarter.

我認為，最終，這個影響——是網外部分——是的，當我們到達那裡時，我們顯然會分享它是什麼；但這不會對底線產生影響，我們將在第二季度做出改變時確定其影響。

But, broadly speaking, a number of different opportunities from a number of different agencies that we're working on. And we feel really good about where we sit, right now.

但從廣義上講，我們正在與許多不同的機構合作，爭取許多不同的機會。我們對目前的處境感到非常滿意。

Jonathan Chaplin, New Street Research.

喬納森·卓別林（Jonathan Chaplin），新街研究公司（New Street Research）。

Just one question for Kate. The explanation of how the Lumen connectivity platform is going to be disruptive to the industry was really helpful, Kate. I was wondering if you could give us some context on who's disrupted?

只想問凱特一個問題。關於 Lumen 連接平台將如何顛覆產業格局的解釋非常有幫助，Kate。我想知道您是否可以告訴我們哪些人受到了乾擾？

So on the revenue side, I understand how the platform facilitates revenue growth for customers. How much of the revenue that goes on to that platform is coming at expense of your Nurture and Harvest categories? And then, how much, from outside of Lumen?

因此，在收入方面，我了解該平台如何促進客戶的收入成長。該平台的收入中有多少是以犧牲「培育」和「收穫」類別為代價的？那麼，從 Lumen 外部來看，有多少呢？

And on the cost disruption side, who's getting disrupted there? Is it the traditional data center companies or is it your enterprise-competitive AT&T and Verizon?

那麼在成本中斷方面，誰受到了乾擾？是傳統的資料中心公司，還是與企業競爭的 AT&T 和 Verizon？

Yeah. Great question.

是的。好問題。

The disruption is across the industry, across the ecosystem, all the players.

這種顛覆影響著整個產業、整個生態系統以及所有參與者。

So what customers get is they're getting a digital experience, higher performance, more value. And they can avoid the cost that they pay to these third-party intermediaries, like the carrier-neutral facilities because they're eliminating the need for cross-connects.

因此，客戶獲得的是數位體驗、更高的性能和更高的價值。而且他們可以避免向這些第三方中介機構（如營運商中立設施）支付的費用，因為他們消除了交叉連接的需求。

So there's a lot of value for customers. And it's different.

因此這對客戶來說具有很大的價值。而且它是不同的。

And we're building it out. It's still early days. But we have a huge amount of demand for this notion of direct fiber access and direct on-ramps from cloud to cloud because a lot of enterprises need to move data from one cloud company to another, say, from Azure into GCP and back and forth.

我們正在建造它。現在還為時過早。但是，我們對直接光纖接入和從雲端到雲端的直接入口的概念有著巨大的需求，因為許多企業需要將資料從雲端公司移動到另一家雲端公司，例如從 Azure 移動到 GCP，然後再來回移動。

And today, if they want to do that, they've got to do a lot hop, skip, and jumps across companies that charge them fees. And what we're offering is a direct connection, where those cross-connect fees are no longer needed.

如今，如果他們想做到這一點，就必須在向他們收取費用的公司之間進行大量的跳躍。我們提供的是直接連接，不再需要交叉連接費用。

And that's disruptive, obviously, to the data center companies. It's also disruptive -- but in a very positive way -- to the cloud service providers. What we're seeing as an early trend -- and it's early days -- but our NaaS offering is driving higher bandwidth consumption through our Cloud Connect offering into cloud.

顯然，這對資料中心公司來說是顛覆性的。這對雲端服務供應商來說也是一種顛覆，但以一種非常積極的方式。我們所看到的是一個早期趨勢——而且現在還處於早期階段——但我們的 NaaS 產品正在透過我們的 Cloud Connect 產品將更高的頻寬消耗引入雲端。

And when I say higher, like, it's an incredible rate. I don't want to give it, right now. But over the past 90 days, very significant growth.

當我說更高時，那是一個令人難以置信的速度。我現在還不想給它。但在過去的90天裡，成長非常顯著。

And what that suggests is that there's a faster path to revenue for the cloud companies, partnering with Lumen to provide networking for their end customers.

這表明，雲端運算公司可以透過與 Lumen 合作為其最終客戶提供網路來更快地獲得收入。

I think we want to spend more time on this at Investor Day because it's really disruptive in a lot of different ways.

我認為我們希望在投資者日花更多時間來討論這個問題，因為它在許多方面確實具有顛覆性。

And the thesis is this: telecom hasn't innovated in a long time. And we made some really tough choices two years ago to rethink how we spend our capital.

論點是這樣的：電信業已經很久沒有創新了。兩年前，我們做了一些非常艱難的選擇，重新思考我們如何花費我們的資金。

And you're seeing the fruits of those investments, now, with this platform and with value that we're delivering to enterprises.

現在，透過這個平台以及我們為企業提供的價值，您可以看到這些投資的成果。

It's still early in our transformation life cycle but the feedback from customers is really terrific. The feedback from the cloud service providers, really terrific. So we're very excited at our progress.

我們的轉型生命週期仍處於早期階段，但來自客戶的回饋確實非常棒。來自雲端服務提供者的回饋真的非常棒。因此，我們對我們的進展感到非常興奮。

There are no further questions, at this time.

目前沒有其他問題。

Great. Thanks, everyone, for joining the call today.

偉大的。感謝大家今天參加電話會議。

We'll appreciate you reaching out with any questions.

如有任何疑問，我們將非常感激。

Thanks.

謝謝。

That does conclude the conference call for today.

今天的電話會議到此結束。

We thank you for your participation and ask that you please disconnect your lines.

我們感謝您的參與，並請您斷開線路。

Have a great day, everyone.

祝大家有個愉快的一天。