Grain Management buys Alaska’s Quintillion for broadband, submarine networks
The executive team of QSH Parent Holdco LLC, whose holdings include North Alaskan service provider Quintillion, says it has been acquired by private investment firm Grain Management, LLC. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Headquartered in Anchorage, AK, and founded in 2015, Quintillion provides high-speed broadband services to communities in Northern Alaska via 500 miles of fiber and operates a submarine cable network of 1200 km (see "Quintillion announces launch of Alaskan submarine fiber-optic cable system"). Quintillion has a three-phase plan to enable its submarine network infrastructure to connect Asia to the American Pacific Northwest, and to Western Europe via the Northwest Passage and through the Alaskan and Canadian Arctic.
"As increasingly more people and businesses depend upon broadband services for school, work, and health care, too many Alaskans are still being left behind. Those who live in unserved and underserved communities deserve the same access to affordable broadband as their urban neighbors enjoy," commented George Tronsrue III, Quintillion’s CEO. "Our partnership with Grain will expedite closing the digital divide and accelerate the pace with which we connect more Alaskans to each other and to the rest of the world. With this partnership, Quintillion will continue to work with our country's defense agencies to enhance our national defense and security in this critical part of the globe."
"The Grain team is passionate about the globally transformative power of broadband technology, and after years of following Quintillion we think this is a great fit for our investment strategy," added Chad Crank, Managing Director at Grain. "We are excited to partner with management to accelerate the company's growth while continuing to support the critical connectivity needs of communities in Alaska and beyond."
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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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