Telecom Ramblings

Lumen Technologies revealed today that it has picked up a rather major federal contract. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently awarded the company a $1.2B task order aimed at modernizing the agency’s IT services both in the US and beyond. [Read more →]

A significant amount of data centers will be changing hands down in Texas. Yesterday DataBank made another inorganic move and agreed to purchase four facilities in the Houston metro area from CyrusOne. [Read more →]

We have a new brand to remember in the world of internet backbones. Telia Carrier has unveiled its new name to be Arelion, putting the cap on its transition from its 30 year run as the international arm of Telia into a fully independent network operator. [Read more →]

Three data center projects and two FTTx expansions: [Read more →]

Lots of news out this week to catch up with.  Here are a few quick-takes on the network side of things: [Read more →]

From around the world today: a new data center project, a new backbone deployment, an interconnection, and some brand new fiber: [Read more →]

As you’ve probably heard, an undersea volcano in the Pacific near the island of Tonga exploded over the weekend, the largest such event in at least a generation or so. But you didn’t hear it from Tonga, because that explosion took out the island’s subsea communications links. [Read more →]

During 2021 we have seen many providers, large and small, invest in their FTTH networks across the country.  Consolidated Communications has been planning for this for a while now, and this year really began to bring homes on-net.  With us today to talk about Consolidated’s plans and progress is Erik Garr, who joined the company this year as President of the Consumer-Small Business unit.  Erik previously led Google Fiber’s business on the East Coast, and while at the FCC co-wrote the National Broadband Plan. [Read more →]

Two network upgrades, some SD-WAN, a new subsea cable project, and a data center campus: [Read more →]

This Industry Viewpoint was authored by Nick Cherukuri, CEO of ThirdEye

Telecommunications is at the core of many industries, such as construction, healthcare and marketing. For these industries, telecom services are essential to getting the job done correctly and on time. Connecting with clients, customers and partners in this increasingly digital environment would not be possible without leading telecom providers. Because of this, it is important that telecom organizations continue to propel [Read more →]

Zayo returned to the M&A trail yesterday with an inorganic move. The Boulder-based fiber operator has announced the acquisition of QOS Networks, strengthening the company’s edge network and SD-WAN capabilities. [Read more →]

A couple edge moves, a couple of deployments, and a rebranding to note at midweek: [Read more →]

A bit of interesting data center M&A activity took place yesterday out in the Midwest. ColoHouse has announced the acquisition of Steadfast, which specializes in cloud, bare metal, and data center services. It’s the company’s fifth deal in the past year. [Read more →]

Some data center expansion plans plus three contract wins from around the world: [Read more →]

The data center industry continues to grow rapidly, and the many ecosystem partners that make it all happen have plenty of opportunities to follow up on.  One of those companies is Rosenberger Optical Solutions & Infrastructure (Rosenberger OSI), a fixture in the European data center landscape that is looking to replicate its success in North America.  Rosenberger OSI’s specialty is fiber optic structured cabling applications.  With us today to tell us how Rosenberger OSI is approaching its expansion plans is Andy Shields, VP of Data Center Solutions. [Read more →]

This Industry Viewpoint was authored by Andres Proano, CRO and EVP of BTS

The international voice market has never been more complex than it is today. Surcharges and penalties are being introduced in new markets while fraud and pricing pressure hurt margins. The role of the Tier 1 carrier has to evolve to be an enabler for profitability and long-term growth. That’s a different mindset than we’ve seen in the past and it is underpinned with new technology and service offerings.   [Read more →]

Two data center expansions, one fiber M&A, and some grant-funded rural fiber: [Read more →]

We started the week with the question of consolidation targets in the US, and now it’s time for the other side of the coin.  What network operators are most likely to be consolidators in 2022?  We’ll take it as a given that ‘infrastructure funds’ would top the more general list of likely buyers, of course, but let’s focus on the existing network operators looking to expand inorgancially.  Last year’s top picks were [Read more →]

We’re getting a bit more of an idea what direction EXA Infrastructure will be taking. This morning EXA and IslaLink announced an agreement centered on the planned IONIAN cable system between Italy and Greece. [Read more →]

The dispute between the aviation and telecommunications sectors over the use of C-band spectrum for 5G continues. After rejecting the most recent FAA call not to roll out network in the new spectrum, Verizon and AT&T have stepped back and agreed to another 2 weeks of delay. [Read more →]

Happy New Year to all!  At least as happy as a third pandemic year can be anyway, but hey.  It’s time for our annual tradition of taking the temperature of the network M&A marketplace for the year ahead.  Today we ask the question of who you think are the likeliest candidates to be sold (in part or in whole) in 2022.  (Not including already pending transactions). If I’ve missed anyone, do let me know. [Read more →]

There has been more and more attention paid to network infrastructure in smaller markets and rural areas in recent years.  One fiber operator that has long focused on such opportunities is Fatbeam, which builds and operates metro and regional fiber networks across the Pacific Northwest and the Rocky Mountains.  They started out mostly with e-Rate projects, but have steadily expanded their footprint both organically and inorganically. With us today to talk about Fatbeam’s experiences and current approach to the markets of this region is COO and CTO Jason Koenders, who joined the company in June of this year.  We last talked with Fatbeam in 2014 with founder and then CEO Greg Green. [Read more →]

This Industry Viewpoint was authored by Todd Foje, CEO of Great Plains Communications

2021 has been an unpredictable year in many ways, yet the rising demand for broadband that occurred was certainly to be expected. As we enter 2022 and contemplate the key trends we’ll see, based upon how essential it has become in our lives, the need for broadband will continue to expand. In fact, offering broadband-for-all in our country —along with everything this effort will encompass —is the direction telecom is moving towards. [Read more →]