As CarrAmerica’s customers become increasingly dependent on telecommunications and the technology infrastructure necessary for high-speed and broadband communications, technology becomes a key component of the services CarrAmerica delivers to its customers. In October 1999, the company joined with a consortium of leading real estate firms to form a new national telecommunications company, Broadband Office, Inc. Designed to deliver mission-critical communication services to tenants in office buildings around the country, Broadband Office, Inc. puts CarrAmerica, its partners and the customers it serves, on the leading edge of their business communities. “The exciting operating and financial potential of Broadband Office for Carramerica is maximized with our involvement at the highest levels,” says Phil Hawkins, CarrAmerica’s COO and a member of Broadband’s Board and its Executive Committee. “By taking a very active role in the formation of Broadband and its emerging leadership, we can ensure that its business plan and services are effectively focused and are directly responsive to the quickly changing needs of our customers.” The new company is financed in part by Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers, one of the nation’s premier venture capital firms. Microsoft and Sun Microsystems have each invested $25 million in Broadband Office, Inc., marking the first time the two rival companies have invested in a single start-up.