Building Broadband: Alaska Communications and Old Harbor Native Corp. extend fiber to Kodiak Island’s tribal communities; Armstrong’s Southern Butler County fiber build targets 44K locations

Alaska Communications and Old Harbor Native Corp. build fiber network to serve Kodiak Island’s tribal communities
Alaskans in four Tribal communities on Kodiak Island will soon get broadband service, thanks to a Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program Round 2 grant funded by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). Project Nunapet, a collaboration between Old Harbor Native Corporation and Alaska Communications, will install a middle-mile subsea fiber cable from Homer to Kodiak Island. It will also deploy a last-mile fiber network offering Gigabit speeds to the Tribal communities of Old Harbor, Chiniak, Akhiok and Womens Bay, serving 570 homes. Project Nunapet will serve as the basis for local expansion and improved network redundancy. Connecting with Alaska Communications’ fiber landing station in Homer, the subsea route will consist of 155 miles of subsea middle-mile fiber, making landfall in Ouzinkie. From Ouzinkie, the subsea cable will travel around the eastern coast of Kodiak Island, landing in Narrow Cape, Old Harbor, and Akhiok.

Armstrong’s Southern Butler County fiber build targets 44K locations
Armstrong has completed its next-generation Advanced Fiber Network construction project in Cranberry, Gibsonia, Mars, Seven Fields, and Valencia communities. Zelienople Borough is slated for this technology in early 2025. For this project, Armstrong installed and activated 970 miles of fiber infrastructure to transform internet connectivity for over 44,000 homes and businesses in the area.

Brightspeed reaches $238M in local, state and federal broadband grants, subsidies and funding
Brightspeed’s local, state, and federal broadband grants and funding reached more than $238 million. This includes the company’s first Broadband, Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program award from the state of Louisiana. These local, state, and federal investments will expand the company’s planned network build by nearly 121,000 in 14 states.

C Spire serves up 5G wireless internet for rural Mississippi consumers
C Spire has launched its fixed wireless access-based (FWA) C Spire 5G Home Internet, expanding rural internet access for thousands of underserved Mississippians. The 5G Home Internet plan is backed by C Spire’s nationwide 5G wireless network. Broadbandnow.com research analysis indicates that about 23 percent of Mississippi households lack an internet connection. C Spire is expanding rural broadband access across Mississippi through a strategic partnership with Inseego. The Inseego 5G Wavemaker FX3110 indoor cellular router delivers reliable, high-speed internet to homes and supports up to 64 connected devices.

Comcast activates $7M network in Kingsland, Georgia
Thousands of homes and businesses in Kingsland, Georgia, and surrounding areas can now access Xfinity, Comcast Business, and NOW services. Comcast invested $7 million to make this technology infrastructure project possible. The next-generation network gives Kingsland residents and business owners access to reliable and fast Internet speeds that outperform competitors — up to 1.2 Gbps for residential customers and up to 100 Gbps for businesses.

Comporium lights fiber gigabit service for five new SC communities
Over 850 homes and businesses in York and Chester Counties in South Carolina have gained access to Comporium's fiber-based multi-gigabit internet service. Comporium placed over 64 miles of fiber network to reach addresses in and around McConnells, Catawba, Clover, York, and Edgemoor. These projects, which required almost $5.2 million investment to extend the company’s fiber network, provide these rural customers with internet speeds of up to 5 Gbps. Comporium combined its private investment and state-issued funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, which was made possible by funding from the South Carolina Broadband Office. This joint funding approach ensures the company reaches the maximum number of addresses possible with its state-of-the-art network. It continues to work with state and federal agencies to find ways to extend or upgrade service to more rural customers.

Conexon Connect’s Irwin EMC partnership brings fiber service to 8K rural Georgia users
Conexon Connect’s new 1,650-mile fiber network, built in partnership with Ocilla-based Irwin EMC, is its fifth broadband project to be completed in Georgia. The Irwin EMC partnership was announced in 2021, and network construction was officially completed in November 2024. Irwin EMC’s network now delivers fiber broadband access to 100 percent of the EMC's 8,400 members across eight counties, bringing Connect's total reach in rural Georgia to more than 50,000 homes and businesses.

Greenlight Networks expands fiber to the Village of Goshen and Middletown, New York
Greenlight Networks plans to expand its fiber internet network into the Village of Goshen and Middletown, New York, connecting over 1,000 Goshen households and more than 5,000 Middletown households to the company’s network. Construction begins in Goshen with the neighborhood between Main Street and Old Minisink Trail. Goshen residents can expect to see service availability in early 2025. Through a partnership with Goshen’s Cataract Engine & Hose Company, Greenlight will house its network equipment at the local fire department’s station located on Green Street and, in exchange, will provide complimentary fiber internet services to the volunteer firefighters serving the Goshen community. Middletown is on the docket for 2025, and pole attachment preparations are underway. This isn’t the first Greenlight development in Middletown; last July, Greenlight announced a partnership with Middletown’s iconic Orange County Fair Speedway.