FAMILIAR QWESTIONS

As Qwest slouches toward bankruptcy, we may hear familiar questions regarding its salvation, questions that echo those we heard recently about WorldCom: Is consolidation the best remedy? Would an AT&T/Qwest merger be acceptable, for example? (AT&T revealed a fresh interest in West Coast local exchange markets when it began offering local dial tone in California last week.) What about a “QweSBC”? Analysts say Qwest stock is trading far below the value of its assets, which could convince would-be acquires to overlook its massive debt load. But here's an alternate proposal: Save Qwest by pulling it apart. The company has been aiming in that direction, putting its ASP, wireless and directory businesses up for sale. But why not divest the long-haul transport assets of “Classic Qwest,” which is burning cash faster than a Denver brush fire? Both Nacchio and Notebaert rejected the idea, but Qwest is unlikely to undo $26 billion in debt simply by adding long-distance customers, as it is trying furiously to do. (Are people really going to sign up for long-distance from a company under criminal investigation?) Notebaert should take this opportunity to shed the company's soiled past. Dismiss the old Qwest business as the folly of “that crazy Joe Nacchio.” Sell those assets, and in doing so, purge Nacchio's stain from the company. Ditch the name Qwest to signal the corporate catharsis. Call the new company “U S West.” It sounds familiar, too.