Broadband Bytes, January 2025 Issue 1
Your Source For The Latest Fiber Optic Industry News
This initial 2025 edition includes: Record year in 2024 fiber deployments, USF and its future in the new Trump administration, net neutrality, Loper/Chevron Doctrine ruling, AI and fiber demand, NTIA guidance on alternative broadband for BEAD, expected BEAD performance measurement rules, 2024 M&A highlights, IQ Fiber acquires ThinkBig Networks MD, Dobson Fiber expands in OK, Surf Internet fiber expansion in IN, Allo Fiber’s new Boulder CO fiber network, Ubiquity finances fiber expansion and more BEAD applications open: NM, NY, AR, AZ.
1. The U.S. fiber industry set another record in 2024, marketing fiber to 10.3 million new homes, up from 9.1 million new homes marketed to in 2023 (+13%), according to data compiled by Michael Render, CEO at RVA LLC. Fiber broadband is now marketed to 76.5 million U.S. homes, and if you include homes with more than one fiber passing, there are now 88.1 million FTTH passings in the U.S. According to the research, fiber now passes 56.5% of U.S. households and 18% of second homes. Compared to the 88.1 million homes currently passed, there are still 149 million passings to go. Read more
2. USF and the new administration. Editorial on the potential future status of the USF under the new Trump Administration. Read more.
3. US court blocks reinstatement of net neutrality. A U.S. appeals court struck a major blow to the Biden administration’s aspirations of restoring net neutrality, ruling that the FCC does not have the power to enforce such regulations. Net neutrality is the concept that all internet users and internet traffic should be treated equally by service providers. This paradigm means providers may not block, slow down, or charge different rates for specific online content. Championed by the Democrats for over a decade and formally introduced as a ruleset by the Obama administration, net neutrality was then rescinded in 2018 during the Trump presidency. Joe Biden made the reinstatement of net neutrality a focal point of his election campaign, issuing an executive order encouraging the FCC to reinstate the rules in 2021. Now, following this new ruling, it seems that net neutrality’s return is unlikely. Read more.
4. Loper Bright and Chevron Doctrine, a court ruling that changes how D.C. operates. A Supreme Court decision this year redefined the balance of power between federal agencies and the courts—curbing the power of regulators like the FCC and the NTIA to interpret ambiguous statutes. The ruling in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, issued in June, was expected to unleash a wave of legal challenges to FCC and NTIA policies that lack explicit Congressional backing, reshaping the landscape of telecommunications and broadband regulation. Read more.
5. If 2024 is an indicator, AI will be huge for fiber in 2025. There were several big news announcements in 2024 about AI driving demand for fiber broadband. The biggest news item was Lumen’s win of a fiber broadband contract with Microsoft. Dave Ward, Lumen’s CTO, said the demand for fiber was creating “the largest expansion of the internet in our lifetime.” Another telling sign that AI is infusing life into the fiber broadband ecosystem was when Nokia’s CEO Pekka Lundmark said in October that telco is no longer the top growth market for the Finnish vendor. Instead, the company has turned its focus for growth to data centers. Read more.
6. Final guidance for BEAD funding of alternative broadband technology. NTIA released guidance to clarify how states can use broadband funding to deploy technologies like Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites and unlicensed fixed wireless. The final Alternative Broadband Technology Policy Notice provides states and territories with additional guidance on issuing subgrants to these alternative technology providers. This notice gives states and territories additional flexibility and simplified processes for determining where Alternative Technologies can be funded, all while ensuring that states and territories may select the most robust technology for each BEAD-funded location, including those locations in the most remote and difficult-to-reach areas. The final guidance and copies of the 138 comments received by NTIA can be found here. Read more.
7. NTIA proposes BEAD performance measurement rules. One of the many requirements for BEAD winners will be to regularly report customer speeds after networks are built. NTIA recently issued a draft of the measurement requirements and the final rules should be similar. Highlights of the measuring requirements can be found here.
8. Sizing up the top 2024 M&A deals. Service providers and vendors alike continued to make acquisitions and mergers in 2024 to scale their businesses and fill in product gaps. Follows is a link that highlights the top M&A stories of 2024. Read more.
9. Jacksonville Florida-based ISP IQ Fiber has completed their acquisition of a Maryland-based fiber provider ThinkBig Networks. IQ Fiber’s planned acquisition of ThinkBig Networks has been completed. The acquisition was backed by SDC Capital Partners. The completed acquisition will add four Maryland counties to IQ Fiber’s footprint: Charles, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Harford. Read more.
FUNDING AWARDS, FIBER EXPANSIONS
1. Dobson Fiber, an Oklahoma-based ISP, has broken ground on a multimillion-dollar fiber network expansion project in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. Dobson Fiber operates a network that spans 38 communities in Oklahoma. In addition to those communities, they also serve less than half a dozen communities in Arkansas. Read more.
2. Surf Internet has embarked on a $5.5 million fiber network expansion project in Peru, a north-central Indiana community. In total, Surf expects to reach 4,275 residential and commercial properties in Peru. The project is backed by an investment of over $5.5 million. During the project, Surf says they are working in tandem with Miami-Cass REMC and their subsidiary, Broadway Broadband. Miami-Cass REMC, described on its website as a not-for-profit, consumer-member-owned utility, will assist Surf with its “local expertise and fiber network resources.” Read more.
3. ALLO Fiber to begin network construction in Boulder, CO. Construction is slated to begin in the spring of 2025. Once construction is completed, Boulder will become one of more than 50 communities ALLO Fiber serves across Nebraska, Colorado, Arizona, Missouri, Iowa and Kansas. Read more.
4. Ubiquity secures more than $400M financing for fiber deployments. Ubiquity, a digital communications infrastructure owner, operator and developer has successfully secured $420 million in green construction financing facilities, with proceeds used to expand the deployment of last-mile open-access fiber networks across its core markets in Texas, California, Arizona and Nebraska. Read more.
5. New Mexico releases BEAD application timelines and criteria. New Mexico has announced the criteria and deadlines for its $675 million BEAD Program allotment. It has set a February 27 Round One application deadline. The deadline will be followed by a review and curing period (February 24-March 28), negotiation (March 31-May 16) and the provisional announcement of awards (May 19-June 19). Read more.
6. New York accepts applications for $664M in BEAD funding. The state of New York has begun accepting applications for $664 million in the BEAD rural broadband funding program. Applications are due February 7. The New York program, known as ConnectALL, is administered by the state agency known as Empire State Development (ESD). Read more.
7. Arkansas opens BEAD application window on January 7. Arkansas, which was awarded $1.024 billion in the BEAD Program, will open and accept Main Round applications from January 7 to January 21. The Arkansas State Broadband Office is administering the process. Arkansas BEAD applications must be submitted to the ARC Connection application portal window. Read more.
8. Arizona’s round one BEAD application window open until February 5. Arizona has set January 6 to February 5 as the Round One application window in their BEAD Program deployment process. The state has been allotted $993.1 million in the program. Arizona’s BEAD Program will be administered by the Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA). Read more.
| Broadband Bytes is a regular feature by David Levine of UCL Swift. David is a graduate of Northern Illinois University, a certified BICSI RCDD, and a 35-year industry veteran in fiber and copper solutions. He currently works as a Business Development Manager for UCL Swift. |
Privacy Statement
Your Privacy Matters
Thank you for considering reaching out to us at UCL.
We are committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring the security of your personal information. This Privacy Notice explains how we collect, use, and safeguard your information when you contact us for sales-related inquiries.
Please take a moment to read this notice carefully.
Information We Collect
When you submit a sales-related inquiry through our contact page, we may collect the following personal information:
Your Name: We need your name to address you appropriately.
Company Name: If applicable, your company name helps us understand your business needs.
Email Address: We collect your email address to respond to your inquiry and for communication purposes.
How We Use Your Information
We use the information you provide for the following purposes:
Responding to Inquiries: We use your name and email address to respond to your sales-related inquiries and provide information about our products or services.
Improving Our Services: We may use aggregated and anonymized data for internal analysis to improve our products and services.
Data Security
We take the security of your personal information seriously and have implemented reasonable safeguards to protect it from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction.
Sharing Your Information
We do not sell, trade, or otherwise transfer your personal information to third parties without your consent, except in cases where it is necessary to fulfill your request or as required by applicable laws.
Your Consent
By submitting your information through our contact page, you consent to the collection and use of your personal information as described in this Privacy Notice.
Your Rights
You have the right to:
Access the personal information we hold about you. Correct inaccuracies in your personal information. Withdraw your consent at any time, if applicable. Request the deletion of your personal information, subject to legal requirements.
To exercise your rights or if you have any questions or concerns about your privacy, please contact us at [insert contact information, e.g., email address].
Changes to this Privacy Notice
We may update this Privacy Notice to reflect changes in our practices or for legal compliance. Please review it periodically for any updates.
Contact Us
If you have questions or concerns about this Privacy Notice or our data handling practices, please contact us at: [Insert Contact Information]
Thank you for considering reaching out to us at UCL.
We are committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring the security of your personal information. This Privacy Notice explains how we collect, use, and safeguard your information when you contact us for sales-related inquiries.
Please take a moment to read this notice carefully.