Announcements of GoNetspeed fiber market launches have been coming at a rapid pace. GoNetspeed President and CEO Richard Clark said the company has been able to do this thanks to its reliance primarily on private funding.
“By privately funding our infrastructure, we are able to build at a faster pace with access to additional resources. Therefore, we are able to build quicker and more efficiently than competitors,” Clark told Telecompetitor.
GoNetspeed was formed in 2021 when six companies — OTELCO, OTTC, Upstate Fiber Networks, Lantek, GoNetspeed, and Icon — formed as one entity through acquisition by Oak Hill Capital to accelerate the expansion of fiber networks throughout the east.
The company serves customers up and down the U.S. Eastern Seaboard, as well as in Alabama and Missouri.
When we asked Clark how GoNetspeed decides where to build, he said, “When we decide to bring our 100 percent fiber internet to a new community, we look at the needs of the community. Oftentimes we see that communities lack options and lack access to service, so for many communities we strive to be a new option and a new solution to help bridge the digital divide.”
Usually when GoNetspeed enters a market, it isn’t the first provider in the area. The company differentiates itself by offering fiber internet with symmetrical speeds.
“With access to 100 percent fiber internet with symmetrical upload and download speeds, life online becomes faster and easier,” Clark said.
GoNetspeed speeds and pricing vary from one state to another. Details are available on the company’s website.
“As a fiber internet provider, we are bringing more competition to the marketplace with better or comparable rates and faster, more reliable internet speeds. Additionally, with more competition in a community, residents will experience better service, better customer service, and better pricing across the board,” Clark notes.
While most of GoNetspeed’s infrastructure is free of government funding, it has done a few partnerships with communities in which the communities contributed government funding that they had received.
As far as tapping into new sources of government funding in the future, Clark said GoNetspeed is open to partnering with communities that would like to discuss this as an option, and those interested in welcoming an additional service provider.
As GoNetspeed continues deploying fiber internet to more communities in the coming year, “we are able to ensure that residents and businesses have access to an infrastructure that will keep up with the growing demand for higher-quality service and faster speeds,” Clark said.
