FairPoint Communications Taps Duke Exec As New CEO

CLARKE CANFIELD

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — The new chairman and chief executive of FairPoint Communications Inc. will work to repair the company's reputation, improve customer service, cut costs and reduce debt when he assumes the job July 1.

David L. Hauser was named Tuesday to succeed Gene Johnson as FairPoint's CEO and chairman of the board. Hauser, 57, comes to FairPoint from Duke Energy Corp. of Charlotte, N.C., where he has worked for 35 years and is chief financial officer. He has been on FairPoint's board since 2005.

"We've been through some tough times, we're getting dramatically better, and I want to keep getting better," Hauser said.

FairPoint, based in Charlotte, has operations in 18 states with about 1.9 million access lines. Its largest holdings are in New England, where last year it bought Verizon Communications Inc.'s wired telephone and Internet operations in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont for $2.3 billion.

The company has been plagued with customer service, Internet and billing problems in northern New England since taking over from Verizon's computer systems at the end of January. After the switch, thousands of customers lost their e-mail, didn't receive their bills and were unable to reach customer service agents.