This week in broadband builds: Ripple Fiber starts construction on $140 million Massachusetts network; GoNetspeed to connect 6,700 in Ansonia, Connecticut; Ziply Fiber services launch in parts of Idaho and Oregon – and more.
The Buildout is a column from Light Reading tracking broadband network deployments. This week we're tracking new construction, awards and service launches reaching over 23,000 locations across the US. Send us your news at [email protected]. Keep up with every installment of The Buildout here.
Ripple Fiber started construction on its $140 million fiber network in Central Massachusetts, first announced in March. Work has commenced in Holden, Massachusetts, to be followed by the neigring Town of West Boylston. Ripple Fiber intends to connect 9,000 homes and businesses in those regions, with the first locations expected to gain service by mid-2025, and additional construction in Worcester County to start "soon," according to a press announcement. In addition to its forthcoming network in Massachusetts, Ripple Fiber also serves parts of Michigan, South Carolina and North Carolina, and was recently awarded $4 million to connect 856 locations in Harnett County, North Carolina, through the state's Growing Rural Economies with Access to Technology (GREAT) program. That award was transferred to Ripple Fiber from original recipient CloudWyze, whose fiber network Ripple acquired in 2024. Also in 2024, Ripple Fiber announced a partnership with investment firm Post Road Group to fund the company's planned expansion to 400,000 locations by the end of 2025.
GoNetspeed will start construction this summer on a $4.3 million fiber network buildout in Ansonia, Connecticut. According to a press release, the new network will reach more than 6,700 homes and businesses. Services are expected to launch in initial construction areas by the fall of 2025. GoNetspeed is funded by Oak Hill Capital.
Ziply's fiber network services are now available to several homes and businesses in Riggins and Osburn, Idaho, as well as Turner, Oregon. In Riggins, currently 375 homes and businesses can now access Ziply's service, with work ongoing to connect more than 1,100 addresses in total. In Osburn, nearly 150 locations can access service, with work ongoing to connect 700 homes and businesses. Over in Oregon, Ziply's network is now live for 600 addresses throughout the city of Turner. Ziply, whose top investors include Searchlight Capital Partners and WaveDivision Capital, is poised to be acquired by Canada's BCE, pending regulatory approvals.
Windstream's Kinetic shared more details in a press release about its recent grants awarded through North Carolina's Completing Access to Broadband (CAB) program, funded by the 2021 American Rescue Plan. The company picked up two awards, totaling $4.9 million, including $2.8 million to connect 785 locations in Union County; and $2.1 million to connect 507 locations in Rowan County. Kinetic will provide $2.1 million for both builds combined. (See The Buildout: North Carolina awards $44M to Brightspeed, Spectrum, others.)
Comcast will connect 3,400 additional homes and businesses in Oxford Borough and Lower Oxford Township, Pennsylvania, to its broadband network. In a press release, Comcast said this expansion is part of its broader investment in Southern Chester County, where work is almost complete to connect 2,500 homes and businesses in East Nottingham, with additional construction underway in West Nottingham and elsewhere.
Metronet will start construction this summer to expand its fiber network in the city of Bloomfield Hills and in the broader Bloomfield Township, in Oakland County, Michigan. Both builds are described as "multimillion-dollar" investments, and initial services are expected to launch this fall. Metronet is expected to be acquired through a joint venture formed last year by T-Mobile and existing investor KKR. Metronet's other existing investor, Oak Hill Capital, would retain a minority stake.
Wire 3 announced it is investing $60 million to build out its fiber network to Deltona and DeLand, Florida. Construction is currently underway and the company expects to connect its first customers as early as winter 2025. The news follows Wire 3's announcement in late March that it is investing $100 million to expand its network to Lake County, Florida, where construction was set to begin this spring, with initial customers expected to be connected by summer. Wire 3 was acquired by Oak Hill Capital, from Guggenheim Investments, in January 2024, with Oak Hill Capital committing to invest "up to $250 million out of Oak Hill's sixth flagship fund to accelerate the expansion of Wire 3's fiber network in underserved communities across Florida," according to a press release. Wire 3 later announced, in December 2024, that it closed a $115 million credit facility, led by Woodforest National Bank, CIBC and JPMorgan, with participation from Axiom Bank, also to further accelerate its Florida builds.
[Editor's note: This week's news was compiled between May 1 and midday May 7. We will include any relevant news released or shared with us thereafter in our next installment on May 16.]
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