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XFONE completed its buildout in
Levelland, Texas, adding 6,200 passings
to its overall FTTP footprint. Guy Nissenson,
XFONE’s president and CEO,
says that since beginning to sign up
Levelland customers in August 2009,
the company has seen a strong response
to its triple-play service offerings; he
expects to reach 69 percent of the Levelland
market. The company says the
Levelland project, which was financed
through a low-cost loan from RUS, will
“serve as the blueprint for our future
projects in new markets.”
Fiber-to-the-home pioneer SureWest
Communications, which now serves
not only its original Northern California
territory but also parts of the greater
Kansas City area, has completed its
FTTH deployment and is now focusing
on using the network to market advanced
video and cellular backhaul services. In
June, the company introduced Online
DVR Manager and Caller ID on TV at
no additional cost to qualifying customers.
Online DVR Manager allows customers
to manage their DVRs remotely
from Web-connected computers; Caller
ID on TV presents incoming caller information
on customers’ TV screens.
In his report on the company’s secondquarter
financial results, SureWest president
and CEO Steve Oldham said, “Expanding
our fiber-to-the-home network
over the last five years has provided us a
significant performance advantage over
our competitors. We have a large inventory
of marketable homes and therefore
do not require further capital expenditures
to extend the network. We built
momentum in our core broadband segment
during the quarter, highlighted
by Advanced Digital TV and wireless
carrier backhaul. Advanced Digital TV
triggered a sequential increase of 5,200
RGUs [revenue-generating units], our
best results since 2008. Taking advantage
of our ubiquitous fiber network, we
are working with three major carriers to
provide wireless backhaul service to over
200 cell sites and are in negotiations for
100 additional sites. These backhaul
projects set the stage for future growth
on recurring revenue streams, and can
be delivered quickly and cost-efficiently
due to our high-capacity networks and
proximity to cellular sites.”
RBOC Update
AT&T Delivers U-Verse Services Over Fiber
In Two New Communities
AT&T, the Apartment Renovation
Group and RPM Management will
bring AT&T bulk services over FTTP
at Campus Pointe in Fresno, Calif. – a
multidwelling, cosmopolitan community
located at California State University,
Fresno, that serves more than
550 residents. Under a new agreement,
AT&T, through its Connected Communities
program, will deliver U-verse TV,
U-verse High Speed Internet and U-
verse Voice over fiber to designated units
in Campus Pointe.
Campus Pointe offers residential living
options for students, seniors and everyone
in between. It also offers 30,000
square feet of office space and plans to
add restaurants, specialty retail stores, an
outdoor performance venue, a 14-screen
movie theater and loft condominiums.
“This agreement with AT&T gives
us an advantage over other properties in
the area, while also boosting the value
of the apartments we offer here at Campus
Pointe,” says Chris Duke, property
manager, Campus Pointe. “Our clientele
ranges from students to business professionals
to seniors and, with AT&T’s
high-speed services, we’re able to meet
the varying technology demands of our
residents and guests in an easy, turnkey
way.”
Another Connected Communities
project is the Barclay at Dunwoody in
Dunwoody, Ga., where AT&T is now
delivering U-verse TV, U-verse High
Speed Internet and U-verse Voice over
an all-IP, all-fiber network. In addition
to U-verse services, Dunwoody residents
will have access to a dedicated AT&T
retail store.
Ken Wright, mayor of Dunwoody,
says, “These investments bring the potential
to grow our economy and create
new jobs in the area.” Adds Robin
Johnson, community manager for the
Barclay at Dunwoody, “Thanks to this
agreement with AT&T, we’re able to offer
the latest and greatest entertainment
solutions directly to our residents, boosting
the value of our property and making
this an even more desirable place to
live in Dunwoody.”
FiOS Growth Slows
in Second Quarter
In the second quarter of 2010, Verizon
Communications reported a slowdown
in its FiOS rollout as it approached the
end of the deployment and prepared to
sell a large part of its territory to Frontier
Communications. Highlights of its
report included the following:
• As of the end of 2Q10, the FiOS network
passed 15.9 million premises,
an increase of about 300,000 over
the end of the first quarter.
• Focusing on marketing rather than
building its fiber network, Verizon
added 196,000 net new FiOS Internet
customers and 174,000 net new
FiOS TV customers; by June 30, it
had 3.8 million FiOS Internet and
3.2 million FiOS TV customers. The
increase in FiOS Internet connections
during the quarter more than offset a
decrease in DSL-based connections.
• FiOS Internet penetration (customers
as a percentage of potential customers)
reached 29.7 percent by the
end of the quarter, when the product
August/September 2010 | www.broadbandproperties.com | BROADBAND PROPERTIES | 31