Wednesday Roundup: Windstream, Cloudli, BAI Communications, CommScope, OpenReach

One M&A and three network rollout projects.

Windstream Wholesale has launched a new overlay network architecture called ICON, short for Intelligent Converged Optical Network. The network upgrade will enable them to offer wholesale and enterprise customers quicker turn-up and greater customization of network functionality. It also comes with new Ciena-powered routes between Hillsboro/Portland and Sacramento as well as Los Angeles and Las Vegas.

There was a bit of consolidation in the unified communications arena yesterday. Cloudli Communications has acquired Quebec-based Omnivigil Solutions, greatly enhancing the company’s Canadian presence. Cloudli serves some 7000 SMB customers in North America, while Omnivigil has about 1800 customers in Canada and 70 partners. The pandemic has drawn significant attention to the SMB cloud telephony market.

BAI Communications has won a 20 year concession under the streets of London. Transport for London has tapped them for high-speed mobile connectivity in the London Underground, enabling 4G and preparing for 5G within stations and tunnels. The first phase will see BAI roll out a modern multi-carrier infrastructure over the next four years.

CommScope and BT’s Openreach are working together to better roll out FTTH in the UK. The project leverages CommScope’s NOVUX platform and hardware to better automate the installation and configuration in the last mile and especially on the pole itself. The partnership will drive 30-50 new manufacturing engineer positions in Rhyl, Wales for the assembly of connectorised block terminals. Openreach has already passed 4.8M homes and businesses, and believes it can build its Full Fibre technology to as many as 4 million premises a year.

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Categories: Internet Backbones · Mergers and Acquisitions · Telecom Equipment · Unified Communications · Wireless