Gigstreem is a managed Wi-Fi provider for multi-family dwelling units (MDUs), and today it announced a $59 million funding round. According to Crunchbase, the company, which was founded in 2017, had already raised $60 million, so the new funding brings its total raised to $119 million.
Virginia-based Gigstreem will use some of the newest funding to support the purchase of certain assets of its competitor GigaMonster Network, which has gone into bankruptcy. The addition of the GigaMonster assets will more than double Gigstreem’s U.S. footprint.
Andrew Kusminsky, CEO at Gigstreem, said that after the integration of the GigaMonster assets, Gigstreem will be about a 100-person company. It’s currently doing business in 22 states, and its roadmap plans for about 28 states by year-end. Gigstreem now services a total of 52,000 apartment units.
Although the big cable operators, Comcast and Charter, have robust businesses selling broadband with Wi-Fi to MDUs, Kusminsky said Gigstreem has an advantage because it’s not trying to sell a bundle that includes video.
He also said, “We’re building networks at multi-family properties to service not only the residents but also the property owners for their backend IoT infrastructure. The relationship with the property owner is financial. They have IoT infrastructure. They want to monitor door locks, and water sensors and do remote tours. They need a network at the property.”
In his opinion, Comcast and Charter “are less about building networks for properties and more about providing services for the consumers.”
Although Comcast and Charter may disagree with that assessment.
In a recent conversation with Mike Mancini, director of sales engineering for Xfinity Communities, he talked about working with very large properties to provide Wi-Fi not just in individual units but across common areas, as well.
Gigstreem’s technology
The big cable companies leverage their wired networks to connect MDUs with broadband and its associated Wi-Fi. But Gigstreem creates connections for MDUs by either buying or leasing fiber access or via wireless links using mmWave spectrum.
Gigstreem uses traditional data center providers such as Digital Realty or CoreSite, and it builds its core infrastructure in those data centers. It then connects its core with the customer’s premise over RF frequencies or fiber.
Kusminsky said the company primarily uses 80 GHz mmWave spectrum for its wireless links, “doing short hops within two miles of data centers.” He said there often can be a few buildings proximate to a nearby data center, so Gigstreem can install antennas on those buildings and “augment with fiber where necessary.”
He said it’s easier to build in dense urban areas, but the company also serves customers in suburban areas.
Once a building is connected, Gigstreem wires it internally with cabling to all the units and other areas that will need connectivity. “When trying to provide quality-of-service for every access point for Gig speeds, you need to ensure you are cabling to every single access point,” said Kusminsky. “Otherwise, you’re connecting to an AP that’s connecting to other APs and losing bandwidth.”
Because Gigstreem is a managed service provider its contract is with the building owner. But that doesn’t mean it’s the exclusive broadband provider for the residents — they can choose other providers if they desire.
However, once a building is wired for Gigstreem, it’s pretty tempting for residents to just use that service because rather than calling another ISP and making an appointment for a tech to install an AP or modem in their unit, the tenant can just provide their billing information and have broadband and Wi-Fi immediately.