Open MIC Announces Significant Shareholder Votes on Internet Privacy and Freedom of Speech

Investors in two major U.S. Internet Service Providers – CenturyTel, Inc. and EarthLink, Inc. – voted in substantial numbers in favor of a first-time shareholder resolution that highlighted the importance of Internet management practices and their impact on Internet privacy and freedom of expression. The resolutions, which were filed and voted on for the first time this year, attracted 30.49% of the vote at CenturyTel and 9.25% at EarthLink. Taken together, the votes mean that investors controlling stock worth more than $900 million voted in favor of the resolutions at the two companies.

“This is the kind of vote that grabs the attention of corporate management.” said Jonas Kron, Senior Social Research Analyst at Trillium Asset Management Corporation, which filed the resolution at CenturyTel. “When almost one out of three shareholders expresses this kind of concern, it’s time for the Board to re-examine how it will attend to the policy challenges, and opportunities, it faces. We hope CenturyTel will take this occasion to become a leader on privacy and freedom of speech.”

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