ART files for Chapter 11

(Telephony) Fixed wireless broadband provider Advanced Radio Telecom (ART)filed for bankruptcy today under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Act. In a prepared statement, the Bellevue, Wash.-based company said it would try to maintain service to its customers for 30 days while helping them switch to other providers. The statement said ART would lay off 90% of its 200 employees.

ART is the latest among several competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs) to go bankrupt, and its official reasoning was familiar.

“Due to the continuing distressed capital markets, it (ART) has been unable to complete any of the financing alternatives it had been pursuing,” according to the statement.

ART’s stock stopped trading on the Nasdaq; its last recorded trade was yesterday at 9/32, down from its 52-week high of $41 9/16.

ART specializes in serving carriers and other service providers using fixed wireless broadband at 39 GHz. It had plans to serve 40 customers nationwide and, as recently as Feb. 20, signed a 10-year contract to provide fixed wireless access to Cable & Wireless in certain U.S. markets. The contract was worth $11 million, and all of it was to be paid immediately, the companies said at the time.

Cable & Wireless spokespeople were not immediately available for comment.