In a strategic move in the suburban Cincinnati area, Brightspeed has acquired 235 miles of fiber assets from Cincinnati Communications LLC.
The acquired infrastructure is adjacent to Brightspeed networks currently being built in Ohio and eastern Indiana. Their acquisition will enable the service provider to reach about 69,500 additional locations in Butler and Hamilton counties.
The Cincinnati assets are 11 miles south of Brightspeed’s build in Mason, Ohio and 12 miles east of its Lawrenceburg, Indiana project.
Brightspeed is active in Ohio. The press release says that available to about 200,000 addresses and has announced updates to its networks in Lima and Warren projects.
It has not done it alone, at least financially. Brightspeed was awarded $13.8 million from the Ohio Residential Broadband Expansion Grant (ORBEG) program, which is funded through the American Rescue Plan Act, the Broadband Expansion Authority and Broadband. That funding has enabled it to plan for 8,300 additional addresses in the state.
In all, with the acquisition of the Cincinnati Communications assets, Brightspeed will reach more than 420,000 locations with fiber in its Ohio footprint.
“These dark fiber assets complement our current fiber network build plan, filling in gaps that help us extend our network and connect even more Ohioans,” Brightspeed Chief Operating Officer Manny Sampedro said in a press release about the Cincinnati asset acquisition.
“We’ve already enabled more than 200,000 homes and businesses in Ohio, and this bold investment not only adds tens of thousands more connection opportunities in the Cincinnati area but also allows us to connect people even faster than starting the build from scratch.”
Last month, Brightspeed priced the sale of $575 million in capital. That funding will add to $3.7 billion it raised last year and $295 million it received in public broadband grants and subsidies.
Brightspeed has pledged to offer service to more than five million addresses in its 20-state footprint.
