The Buildout: GoNetspeed makes moves in Connecticut

GoNetspeed announced progress on its network build plans in Connecticut this week. The company said it started construction on its $1.4 million fiber buildout in Thomaston, Connecticut. The first customers are expected to be eligible for service installation this winter, said GoNetspeed. The network will ultimately deliver service to more than 1,800 homes and businesses. Also in the state, GoNetspeed said it has expanded its construction operations for its network build in Glastonbury, Rockville, Vernon and Watertown, Connecticut. The company said it expects to start service installations in Glastonbury, Rockville and Vernon by the end of this fall, and in Watertown by the end of the year. Construction is expected to be complete by the end of year, delivering service to more than 1,700 homes and businesses. Additionally this week, GoNetspeed confirmed it has started construction on its Fairfield, Connecticut, network, which is slated for completion later this fall and will connect nearly 1,000 locations. GoNetspeed is building out in multiple states with private equity funding from Oak Hill Capital. The company is currently active in over 30 Connecticut communities.

Fybe, the fiber broadband arm of Roanoke Cooperative (and formerly known as Roanoke Connect), has completed its network expansion in Edenton, North Carolina, after breaking ground earlier this year. The new network expands fiber to 4,300 homes and businesses in the region, according to Fybe.

Intrepid Fiber Networks announced Eden Prairie, Minnesota, as the third market in the state where the company is building out a fiber broadband network. In a press release, Intrepid Fiber – which is a wholesale provider backed by investment firm Brookfield Infrastructure – said the open access network will deliver service to over 25,000 homes and businesses. The news follows other recent announcements from the company on its expansion plans elsewhere in Minnesota.

Charter's Spectrum this week announced the launch of its services in the Louisiana parishes of St. Tammany, Tangipahoa and Washington. The build – part of Spectrum's commitment through the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) – will bring services to nearly 3,800 homes and businesses. Spectrum won roughly $1.2 billion through RDOF, which is part of a $5 billion overall investment from the company in the rural US.

TDS said it has connected its first fiber customers in Bangor and Rockland, Wisconsin. TDS started construction on the fiber networks last fall, through its subsidiary TDS Metrocom LLC, and will ultimately bring service to nearly 1,000 addresses when work is complete. The build is being funded by TDS, which said it is investing roughly half a billion dollars to expand its fiber network in Wisconsin. The company also announced last week that it's making progress on its buildout in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, which will ultimately serve 25,000 locations.

HTC – a telco cooperative – announced it will start construction this month to bring fiber broadband to Conway, South Carolina. The project will occur in multiple phases and is expected to be complete by 2025. In a press release, HTC said it has invested $293 million thus far to upgrade 85% of its network to fiber. According to the latest census data, Conway claims roughly 7,121 households.

Ritter Communications is investing $1.8 million to bring its RightFiber broadband services to parts of Walnut Ridge and Hoxie, Arkansas, said the company in a press release. According to local reporting, the build is "almost finished" in the regions, where high-speed broadband "has been a highly requested item." Ritter offers RightFiber plans at advertised speeds between 200 Mbit/s and 5 Gbit/s.