Ohio-based internet service provider Horizon Telecom struck a deal to acquire Consolidated Cooperative’s commercial fiber business, netting 450 miles of new fiber as it works to expand its network in the Midwest.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. A Horizon representative told Fierce the transaction is expected to close in late Q3 or early Q4 of this year.
Founded in 1895 as the Home Telephone Company, Horizon operates more than 5,500 route miles of fiber. Its operations include a Residential and Small Business division serving southern Ohio and an Enterprise Fiber unit which offers Ethernet, internet, cloud-based voice service, data center connectivity, and backhaul across parts of Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
The fiber infrastructure included in its deal with Consolidated Coop (not to be confused with Consolidated Communications) spans eight counties in Ohio. A Horizon representative told Fierce the assets are a “natural fit” for its footprint, complimenting “our presence and expansion in the Columbus market, which we launched about two years ago and are continuing to densify.”
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“We have several customers and prospects with locations that straddle both networks. The acquisition helps us serve them all,” the representative said, adding a “greater footprint allows us to serve multi-location companies and wholesale carriers.”
Horizon has focused a lot on enterprise recently. In October 2020, for example, it announced a project to expand enterprise-grade fiber Ethernet, internet, voice, wavelength and dark fiber to the city of Dayton, Ohio. And in March of this year, it inked a deal to acquire Infinity Fiber and its 450-mile long-haul network to extend its reach into Indiana.
At the time, Horizon CRO Glenn Lytle stated Infinity’s assets would enable it to “better serve our wholesale and carrier partners with a unique fiber route from Columbus, Ohio through Indianapolis to Chicago” and offer its suite of services to enterprise customers in downtown Indianapolis.
While “enterprise growth is still a priority and happening quickly,” the Horizon representative told Fierce it plans to make moves in the residential market in the near future.
“We’ll be seeing a lot more FTTH growth, with new community launches being released soon,” the representative concluded.