Bell Canada to Acquire Ziply Fiber for $3.6 Billion, Extends Footprint into Pacific Northwest

Fiber internet service provider Ziply Fiber, headquartered in Kirkland, Wash., agreed to be acquired by BCE Inc. subsidiary Bell Canada for about $3.6 billion. This is a major acquisition for Bell as it looks to grow its presence in the fast-growing Pacific Northwest region of the United States, where Ziply serves more than 1.3 million residential and business customers across Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana.

Strategic Acquisition by Bell Canada

Acquiring Ziply will give the company access to the current fiber network of Ziply, covering thousands of miles, which has already been proven and has been used to provide access to high-speed internet across underserved communities in the US. The company will grow its fiber infrastructure in Pacific Northwest and plans to provide Ziply’s services on more than 3 million locations in the next four years.

Bell Canada is one of the largest telecommunications companies in Canada. Following a few years of rapid growth, the company considered Ziply’s strong position in the region to be a significant strategic asset to facilitate further growth. The acquisition will further serve the broad objective of the expansion of fiber-based broadband services to more customers, particularly in an increasingly competitive broadband market in North America.

Although investors were expecting the company’s stock to rise with the announcement, the stock plunged over 10% shortly after still. It is probably on the part of worried investors due to the financial stress of such a big acquisition, although analysts believe that long-term expansion into the Pacific Northwest would balance out the initial shock.

Ziply’s Rapid Growth and Fiber Network Expansion

Ziply Fiber is a newer broadband player, formed in 2020, but has quickly gained ground in building out its network. The company was formed after WaveDivision Capital and Searchlight Capital Partners acquired Northwest operations of Frontier Communications for $1.35 billion. Ziply, under Harold Zeitz, former president of Wave Broadband, has significantly expanded its footprint through the building of over 2,000 new fiber miles and, of course, knows for offering some of the fastest residential internet services in the U.S.

High-speed and reliable fiber-optic internet has been among the key factors driving fast growth for Ziply. The network expansion of this company enables it to compete with the regional ISPs and larger national telecom providers by offering much more advanced fiber connections, with higher speeds.

This would indicate significant investments in infrastructure up-grading and further deploying fibre into more regions. A major selling point has also been the expansion by Ziply into rural and underserved communities, as this sets it apart and gives the company a real shot at being a game-changer in areas where other traditional internet service providers have dragged their feet over bringing newer, faster versions to fruition.

Leadership and operations remain the same.

Founded and operated by seasoned telecommunications operator and former operating chief for Wave Broadband, Harold Zeitz, Ziply Fiber has really picked the pace since inception. A former Chief Executive of Wave Broadband, Steve Weed was also the one instrumental to sell Wave Broadband in 2018 to the sum of $2.36 billion.

Although Ziply Fiber has been acquired by Bell Canada,

it managed to convince its customers as well as employees that their business remains the same. A representative from the company assured them that no immediate changes regarding the workforce of the Seattle area will take place and day-to-day operations will remain untouched due to this acquisition. This is a relief action both for the employees as well as the customers, because a lot of major acquisitions bring fear in the customers as well as the workforce.

The Future of Fiber Broadband in the Pacific Northwest

The acquisition will greatly accelerate broadband access in the Pacific Northwest, and offer faster, more reliable internet to an area where demand for high-speed services is rapidly growing. It would expand Ziply’s reach to 3 million locations within a couple of years, making Bell a dominant player in the broadband market for both residential and business customers in the United States.

In particular, the takeover also highlights a trend regarding major telecom companies investing into fiber-optic infrastructure toward meeting greater demands for Internet speeds as well as reliable services that are getting higher day-to-day. With the progressive rollout of 5G networks and smart cities going up around the world, fiber becomes the gold standard for fast internet, thus Ziply’s large extensive fiber network will be beneficial to Bell as it helps the company stand out through its large and expansive competition in broadband services.

For Bell Canada, the acquisition will position the company to expand its influence in the U.S. broadband market while helping bring much-needed high-speed internet to the Pacific Northwest. For Ziply, the deal provides the backing of a large telecommunications conglomerate with the resources to expand its network and service offerings even further.

As the telecom industry continues to consolidate with the likes of Bell looking for further broadband footprints, the future may be filled with much more exciting activities for Ziply. Continuous high demand for fiber-optic internet in cities and out in the countryside means that an acquisition by Bell is indeed a strategic move with long-term benefits.