Brightspeed announced the first phase of its fiber network buildout in Tennessee that promises faster, more reliable internet and WiFi to 60,000 customers in Carter, Greene, and Washington counties by 2023. The initiative will increase coverage to more than 130,000 locations over the next few years.
The company also plans to make Johnson City, TN, home to a major operational work center.
“High-quality, reliable broadband has never been more critical, whether for work, education, telemedicine, entertainment, or just staying connected,” says Chris Creager, chief administration officer at Brightspeed. “We can’t wait to introduce our state-of-the-art products and simple intuitive customer experience to households and businesses across our service area.”
Brightspeed intends to invest at least $2 billion to reach up to 3 million customers within its 20-state footprint over the next five years. The company, to be formed by the pending sale of Lumen ILEC assets Apollo (see “Lumen to sell CenturyLink ILECs in 20 states to Apollo Funds”), is focused mainly on rural and suburban regions of the country where fiber and advanced technologies have not historically been deployed.
Brightspeed will leverage technologies like XGS-PON to deliver speeds exceeding 1 Gbps over fiber (see "Brightspeed sets FTTH target for 2023"). In addition to Tennessee, it has already announced build plans for Alabama, Louisiana, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, and Wisconsin. Announcements of further plans are forthcoming, the company says.
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