Fidium is now the official name of the company formerly known as Consolidated Communications. Prior to the name change, the provider used the Fidium name as a brand for its fiber broadband service for several years.
“Fidium is now the new name and face of our company, representing our fiber internet and network services capabilities across consumer, commercial and carrier lines of business,” said a Fidium spokesperson in an email to Telecompetitor.
Consolidated was one of numerous broadband providers that introduced a separate brand name for their high-speed broadband offerings.
For companies with telecom roots, a key goal was to differentiate their high-speed offerings from slower DSL services. Other telcos that have chosen this option include Shentel, which uses the Glo Fiber brand for its fiber offerings; Windstream, which uses the Kinetic brand; and others.
For cable companies, the goal of the new brands was to differentiate their broadband offerings from their traditional video businesses. Those businesses traditionally were infamous for poor customer service. Cable companies that have adopted new brands include Comcast, which uses the Xfinity brand; Charter, which uses the Spectrum brand; Altice, which uses the Optimum brand; and others.
The Consolidated Communications Name Change
Using a separate brand for fiber is one thing. But any telco choosing to totally rename the company with the new brand should probably wait until it has widely deployed fiber broadband. Otherwise, the company runs the risk of diluting the brand’s strength in service areas without fiber.
Fidium’s new owners apparently considered this before making the name change. (The company has been privately held since late last year when it was acquired by Searchlight Capital Partners and British Columbia Investment Management Corp.)
Today’s announcement about the name change notes that more than 75% of Consolidated Communications’ broadband customers are now served by fiber. The goal is to increase that to 80% “within the next few years.”
The company spokesperson also told us that “The Consolidated brand will continue in a limited role, serving residential and business customers on copper network services. As we continue to upgrade our network, those customers will transition to fiber and to the full Fidium brand experience.”
New Tagline
Fidium also announced a new tagline today: “Fiber Up.”
“The Fidium brand unites our work as we are standardizing the network, digitizing the customer experience and energizing our employees,” said Gaurav Juneja, chief operating officer for Fidium, in today’s announcement.
“We’re investing in providing access, connectivity and opportunity to hundreds of communities. That’s why ‘Fiber Up’ is more than a tagline — it’s a call to action for people, businesses and communities to grow, innovate and prosper together.”
Updated to correct spelling on Gaurav Juneja’s name
