Horizon buys commercial fiber business of Ohio’s Consolidated Cooperative
Horizon says it has acquired the commercial fiber business of fellow Ohio-based service provider Consolidated Cooperative. The deal gives Horizon another 450 miles of fiber on top of its existing Columbus network and extends the company’s footprint north through Delaware, Marion and Richland counties. The agreement, terms of which were not disclosed, leaves Consolidated with its residential fiber internet operations.
Consolidated Cooperative, which supplies electric, gas, and internet serves more than 18,000 consumers in Central Ohio, got into the commercial fiber services business in 2009 (and into residential services in 2017). “The enterprise fiber business has exceeded our goals and expectations for it, which were primarily to improve our electric operations, set us up to offer broadband internet service in the future, and help to pay for all that by selling capacity to third parties,” said Phil Caskey, Consolidated Cooperative’s president and CEO. “At this juncture, we determined that the best path forward for Consolidated, our members, and our communities is to focus on growing our electric, gas, and residential fiber internet services. Selling our commercial fiber business to Horizon will allow us to do that, and we know Horizon will continue to provide outstanding service to commercial organizations in our region.”
“Horizon remains committed to expanding its network capabilities and geographic reach in order to continue meeting the evolving communications and connectivity needs of businesses and communities throughout the Midwest,” added James Capuano, CEO of Horizon. “Consolidated’s proven ability to deliver ultra-high-speed broadband internet and data services with high levels of performance, availability, flexibility, and redundancy affirms that these infrastructure assets will deliver exactly the next-gen capabilities organizations are looking for. We’re excited to supplement our existing capabilities and make this mutually beneficial step toward a more connected future.”
Horizon says it will continue to serve its new customers according to their existing contracts.
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Stephen Hardy | Editorial Director and Associate Publisher, Lightwave
Stephen Hardy is editorial director and associate publisher of Lightwave and Broadband Technology Report, part of the Lighting & Technology Group at Endeavor Business Media. Stephen is responsible for establishing and executing editorial strategy across the both brands’ websites, email newsletters, events, and other information products. He has covered the fiber-optics space for more than 20 years, and communications and technology for more than 35 years. During his tenure, Lightwave has received awards from Folio: and the American Society of Business Press Editors (ASBPE) for editorial excellence. Prior to joining Lightwave in 1997, Stephen worked for Telecommunications magazine and the Journal of Electronic Defense.
Stephen has moderated panels at numerous events, including the Optica Executive Forum, ECOC, and SCTE Cable-Tec Expo. He also is program director for the Lightwave Innovation Reviews and the Diamond Technology Reviews.
He has written numerous articles in all aspects of optical communications and fiber-optic networks, including fiber to the home (FTTH), PON, optical components, DWDM, fiber cables, packet optical transport, optical transceivers, lasers, fiber optic testing, and more.
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