A few items of regional interest to start off this Tuesday morning:
Regional provider Vision Net has selected the Telx facility at 350 East Cermak in Chicago for colocation and interconnection. Vision Net operates a fiber network in Montana, one of the more remote areas in the lower 48. By extending their reach into Telx’s facility, they can offer their customers in Montana direct access to a great many more carriers than they might be able to get in Billings or Helena.
Level 3 Communications (NYSE:LVLT, news, filings) picked up a regional contract expansion in Arkansas, having been selected by the Arkansas Research and Education Optical Network (ARE-ON) as its primary supplier of colocation, high speed IP, and IPv6 services. The two year deal will see ARE-ON use Level 3 bandwidth to serve universities state-wide, as it works through a mandated transition to IPv6. Presumably that is via Level 3’s extensive Little Rock assets, since I don’t think they have much else in the area.
In northern Virginia, abvt won a contract with Virginia Tech. The metro fiber operator will connect up the university’s data centers and research facilities in the area. The fiber ring spans some 90 route miles and includes a PoP at the a new state-of-the art research institute in Arlington as well as one at Virginia Tech’s National Capital Region Aggregation Facility where a variety of other major research networks also make an appearance. Sounds like a typical fiber-heavy Abovenet type of contract.
And down in Texas, Alpheus Communications (news) kept up its recent steady stream of news by announcing Commercial Alliance Insurance Company as a colocation customer. CAIC is seeking to guarantee business continuity throughout the Hurricane season in Houston, amongst other things, and Alpheus’s hardened data center apparently fit the bill. While it turned up amongst those fiber players rumored to be for sale, Alpheus hasn’t yet turned up in any further rumors that I have heard lately. Anyone else heard of further developments?
If you haven't already, please take our Reader Survey! Just 3 questions to help us better understand who is reading Telecom Ramblings so we can serve you better!
Categories: Metro fiber
Join Our LinkedIn Group
I’ve been told they are locked up in exclusivity discussions with a strategic buyer
Hmmm, interesting…
TWTC picking up Alpheus?
If pressed, I’d have to go with Zayo. Alpheus’s footprint is tailor made for a new entry into the market, whereas TWTC is already pretty strong in Texas and doesn’t need it as much. Zayo’s interest in expanding its footprint seems to fit well with a big move south in Texas as well. They have some metro miles in Dallas already as I recall.