CenturyLink to Sell Data Centers for $2.3 Billion

CenturyLink said it plans to sell its data centers and colocation business to a consortium led by BC Partners for $2.3 billion, which it will use in part to fund its planned tie-up with Level 3 Communications. Under the terms of the agreement announced, CenturyLink has agreed to sell the data centers and colocation business for $2.15 billion in cash. It will also receive a $150 million minority stake in the consortium’s new global secure infrastructure company.

CenturyLink recently reached a $25 billion cash-and-stock deal to buy Level 3. The deal would turn CenturyLink—which has grown from a small Louisiana phone provider by scooping up the former Qwest and Sprint’s landlines—into an even more corporate-focused service provider. The combined company would also keep millions of home Internet subscribers, most of whom use slower digital subscriber lines.