Private equity

Great Plains Communications is one of a growing number of tier 2 and 3 providers with long-term roots that has been acquired by an investment firm, a move that has helped the company expand rapidly.

Private equity firm Friedman Capital is looking to scoop up as many as 20 small broadband providers across the Southeastern Sunbelt region in the US, aiming to build a sizable competitor capable of bringing better broadband to parts of the country experiencing rapid population growth. Friedman Capital launched a new strategic investment fund to fuel its plan, aiming to secure $250 million in capital commitments.

Representatives for T-Mobile and Ka’ ena Corporation met with Federal Communications Commission officials to argue why T-Mobile should be able to acquire Mint Mobile and Ultra Mobile from Ka’ ena. According to a June 5 , 2023 filing with the FCC, T-Mobile presented a PowerPoint spelling out why the transaction will not harm the competition or consumers.

Windstream will walk away from its Chapter 11 bankruptcy for good following a decision from the Federal Communications Commission to waive a rule that prohibits US telecommunications carriers from having more than 25% ownership by foreign companies. The FCC waiver is the final stamp of approval for Windstream’s plan of reorganization, for which the Bankruptcy Court gave the go-ahead in June 2020.

Private equity (PE) money has been flooding into the broadband market over the past two years. Everywhere you look, someone has a PE partner of some kind.

WIA Connect(X) show panelists were asked if there is a magic number that developers should target for the cost per home passed with fiber. Beth Hoffman, managing director with Berkshire Partners, said that a lot of it depends on the density of the market. The cost per home passed in a dense city like San Francisco (CA) could be as low as $700.

North Carolina-based broadband provider Brightspeed has caught the eye of Abu Dhabi sovereign investor Mubadala, which will invest $500 million into the operator. The investment, subject to regulatory approvals and conditions, would make Mubadala a minority shareholder alongside Apollo Global Management, Brightspeed’s parent company.

Private equity firms have been investing heavily in broadband providers in recent years, typically infusing cash into their acquisitions to expand operations, increase a company’s value and then do an initial public offering or sell the company at a profit several years later. What do private equity firms look for in a broadband acquisition? How involved are they in a provider’s operations? For EQT Group, fiber is a top selection criterion in making acquisitions.

Texas-based broadband provider Element8 is looking to make a name for itself in rural America. The company snagged a $200 million infusion of cash from private equity firm Digital Alpha to push its fixed wireless access and fiber services deeper into the central US. Founded in 2020, Element8 has focused on serving broadband in its home state primarily using fixed wireless access technology and a sprinkle of fiber.

Fixed wireless and fiber provider Rise Broadband has been acquired by private equity firm GI Partners – a move that will propel Rise’s fiber-to-the-home deployments in the rural US, the companies said. GI Partners and Rise aim to “execute a multi-year, fiber-based network expansion effort,” according to Brendan Collins, managing director and co-head of GI Data Infrastructure.