PODCAST: Astound Broadband's Sonne on BEAD, broadband partnerships and penetrating MDUs

In this new Broadband Pulse podcast, we talked to Jared Sonne, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Astound West Region.

Sonne, who began his career in the cable industry with Suddenlink, joined Astound as a member of Wave. In early 2022, RCN, Grande, Wave, enTouch, and Digital West, which together form the sixth-largest U.S. internet, TV, and phone operator, announced plans to transition their regional brands to Astound Broadband.

He now oversees Astound's Western region. In this market, the service provider continues to expand its services not only to urban areas but also to hard-to-reach rural markets. For example, Sonne was part of the team bringing fiber-based broadband to Washington State’s Clallam County, which has long been synonymous with predicting the official presidential election winners, a record it held until 2024.

During the session, Sonne addressed how Astound Broadband is approaching new opportunities with the government's BEAD program, community and commercial broadband partnerships, broadband wireless and its ongoing penetration into the multi-dwelling unit (MDU) broadband market. 

Here’s a timeline of the episode:

Opening | 0:00

Host introduction of guests | 0:03

Astound’s 2025 highlights | 0:21
Sonne discusses Astound’s fiber and overall broadband expansion.

Public-private broadband partnerships | 1:52
How Astound is working with local communities and large businesses like Amazon to extend broadband access to hard-to-reach areas.

Replicating broadband partnership models | 3:19
Sonne addresses how Astound evaluates the economics of new broadband builds.

Communities approaching Astound | 4:28
How the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted communities’ need for high-speed broadband for remote work and other activities.

Broadband’s influence | 5:37
When Astound builds out broadband in a community, it helps drive new economic development opportunities.

Approaching the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment Program (BEAD) program | 7:20
Astound sees the BEAD program as a way to overcome economic obstacles in unserved communities.  

Multi-dwelling unit (MDU) broadband opportunities | 9:04
How Astound searches for MDU opportunities that make the most business sense.  

PON technology | 11:00
How Astound has standardized on XGS-PON for its FTTH rollout.

Coax to fiber migration | 12:18
Astound continues to evaluate how it will migrate from coax to fiber across its markets.

Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) | 14:32
Astound is using Tarana’s FWA technology to extend its broadband network.

The wireline and wireless convergence opportunity | 17:45
How Astound is bundling wireless services with broadband and video for customers through its relationship with T-Mobile.

Final thoughts/closing | 18:46
Jared Sonne shares his final thoughts, and we close out the podcast session.

About our guest
Jared Sonne has over 20 years of experience in the telecommunications and broadband industry. He started his career at Suddenlink Communications (now Optimum) in 2006, serving as Vice President of Finance and later the Director of Operations. In 2013, Jared joined the company as the Senior Director of Operations. Later, he became VP of Operations, then SVP of Operations, leading a large team and overseeing various departments. In 2018, Jared joined Wave Broadband (now Astound) as Senior VP/GM, where he leads multiple divisions and is responsible for serving residential and commercial customers. Sonne holds a BA in marketing communications from Brigham Young University and an MBA in finance from the University of Florida - Warrington College of Business.

About the Podcast 
In the Lightwave Broadband Pulse podcast, we address key issues affecting the optical and broadband industries. Join us every week for insights from industry leaders on these topics. Visit our website at www.lightwave.com and click on our podcast site at www.broadbandpulse.podbean.com/.