Fierce

Rural broadband providers breathed a sigh of relief after the Federal Communications Commission announced it would waive steep cuts to Universal Service Fund (USF) support which were set to take effect in July 2022.

A key provision in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs ACT (IIJA) calls for funding for broadband and other projects to go toward those which use products and materials containing primarily domestic-made components. But a growing number of broadband groups and vendors have told the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) that’s just not realistic.

Frontier Communications is looking to raise a total of $1.2 billion through a debt offering of lien-secured notes to help keep its fiber expansion plan rolling along. The company originally planned to seek $800 million, but subsequently bumped up its target figure by $400 million. It did not provide a reason for the change. The notes on offer will bear interest at a rate of 8.75 percent each year and must be repaid by 2030. Alongside the debt, Frontier announced it increased its revolving credit facility to a total of $900 million.

Cable One saw an uptick in customer growth and revenue in first quarter 2022, driven by business acquisitions, and is seeking rapid fiber expansion with its Clearwave Fiber investment. CEO Julie Laulis thinks the latter especially puts the operator in a vital position against competitors.

Tucows CEO Elliott Noss revealed its Ting Internet business expects to begin construction of a new fiber network in Alexandria (VA) sometime in the current quarter, after winning a bid to cover tens of thousands of locations there. The deployment will tee it up to challenge incumbent cable provider Comcast as well as Verizon Fios, which is in the process of upgrading its copper lines in the area to fiber. Noss said Alexandria already includes 90,000 serviceable addresses and is expected to grow considerably with the construction of Amazon’s new HQ2 offices in nearby Arlington (VA).