Bell Canada buying Ziply Fiber for C$7 billion; will become 3rd largest fiber ISP in U.S.

Bell Canada (owned by BCE) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Ziply Fiber in a deal with a transaction value of around C$7 billion (C$3.65 billion in cash plus the assumption of debt).  The acquisition is expected to close in the second half of 2025, subject to certain customary closing conditions and the receipt of certain regulatory approvals.  Following the deal closure, Ziply Fiber, a fiber Internet provider in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S, will operate as a separate business unit and will continue to be headquartered in Kirkland, Washington.

BCE said the acquisition enhances Bell’s growth profile and strategic position by giving it a foothold in the large, underpenetrated U.S. fiber market. The deal will increase its scale, diversify its operating footprint and unlock significant growth opportunities.  This deal would make Bell Canada the third largest fiber internet services provider in North America, after AT&T and Verizon.  It follows Verizon’s recent announcement that it’s acquiring Frontier Communications for $20 billion.

Currently, AT&T passes 28 million locations with fiber, and Verizon passes 17.8 million.

AT&T says it will pass 30 million locations by the end of 2025 and may ultimately choose to pass 45 million locations.

Verizon says it will pass 30 milli

on locations after the Frontier buyout closes.

When the Ziply buy-out is finalized, Bell Canada will have about 9 million fiber locations, combining its 7.7 million locations in Canada with Ziply’s 1.3 million in the U.S. Bell Canada said it has a goal of passing 12 million fiber locations in North America by 2028.

Lumen’s original target for its residential Quantum Fiber expansion was 12 million locations, but the company cut its target to between 8 million and 10 million. Lumen expects to exceed 500,000 new passings in 2024.

 

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Ziply was founded in May 2020 when it purchased network assets from Frontier in the states of Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana. The company was founded by CEO Harold Zeitz and Steve Weed, who’s the executive chairman. Ziply’s current owners are Wave Division Capital and Searchlight Capital, which are selling to Bell Canada.

Zeitz told Fierce Network about two-thirds of Ziply’s broadband footprint is currently fiber, and it’s working to overbuild its remaining copper plant with fiber. “In addition to building in the ILEC footprint, we’re also building outside that footprint in adjacent markets,” said Zeitz.  By “adjacent markets” he was referring to the many towns “adjacent” to Ziply markets where Lumen Technologies is the main broadband provider.  Ziply has a goal to build fiber in about 80% of its footprint, but it may expand that. And under Bell’s ownership it plans to build 20% faster.

“We just want to deliver a refreshingly great experience to all the towns in our four-state area,” Zeitz said.  “We think there’s tremendous opportunity organically. There are 50-60 million households that don’t have fiber. I think over time we’ll see more acquisitions,” he added.

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Analysts at AlixPartners said there are more than 400 small fiber providers in the U.S. that could be acquired by investors or larger fiber optic telcos. The firm conducted a survey in August of 60 executives at different fiber companies and 1,000 U.S. residents. According to the survey, 93% of respondents said consolidation is happening or will happen soon.  “It’s clear based on the results that this is a buyer’s market—but sellers can use this knowledge to their advantage as well, the firm noted.

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References:

https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/bces-bell-canada-buy-ziply-fiber-around-c-7-bln-cash-debt-deal

https://www.fierce-network.com/broadband/fiber-mergers-continue-bell-canada-buying-ziply-fiber-7-billion

SK Telecom unveils plans for AI Infrastructure at SK AI Summit 2024

Introduction:

During the two-day SK AI Summit 2024 [1.], SK Telecom CEO Ryu Young-sang unveiled the company’s comprehensive strategy which revolves around three core components: AI data centers (AIDCs), a cloud-based GPU service (GPU-as-a-Service, GPUaaS), and Edge AI.  SK Telecom is planning to construct hyperscale data centers in key regions across South Korea, with the goal of becoming the AIDC hub in the Asia Pacific region. Additionally, the company will launch a cloud-based GPU service to address the domestic GPU shortage and introducing ‘Edge AI’ to bridge the gap between AIDC and on-device AI.  This innovative approach aims to connect national AI infrastructure and expand globally, in collaboration with partners both in South Korea and abroad.

Note 1. The SK AI Summit is an annual event held by the SK Group, where global experts in various AI fields gather to discuss coexistence in the era of artificial general intelligence (AGI) and seek ways to strengthen the ecosystem.

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Constructing AI Data Centers in South Korea’s key regions:

SK Telecom plans to start with hyperscale AIDCs that require more than 100 megawatts (MW) in local regions, with future plans to expand its scale to gigawatts (GW) or more, to leap forward as the AIDC hub in the Asia Pacific region.

By extending the AIDC to national bases, centers can secure a stable power supply through the utilization of new renewable energy sources such as hydrogen, solar and wind power, and easily expand to global markets through submarine cables. SK Telecom anticipates building AIDC cost-effectively when the data center combines SK Group’s capabilities in high-efficiency next-generation semiconductors, immersion cooling, and other energy solutions, along with its AI cluster operation.

Prior to this, SK Telecom plans to open an AIDC testbed in Pangyo, Korea, in December, which combines the capabilities of the SK Group and various solutions owned by partner companies. This facility, where all three types of next-generation liquid cooling solutions—direct liquid cooling, immersion cooling, and precision liquid cooling—are deployed, will be the first and only testbed in Korea. It will also feature advanced AI semiconductors like SK hynix’s HBM, as well as GPU virtualization solutions and AI energy optimization technology. This testbed will provide opportunities to observe and experience the cutting-edge technologies of a future AIDC.

 Supplying GPU via cloud to metropolitan areas:

SK Telecom plans to launch a cloud-based GPU-as-a-Service (GPUaaS) by converting the Gasan data center, located in the metropolitan area, into an AIDC to quickly resolve the domestic GPU shortage.

Starting in December, SK Telecom plans to launch a GPUaaS with NVIDIA H100 Tensor Core GPU through a partnership with U.S.-based Lambda. In March 2025, SK Telecom plans to introduce NVIDIA H200 Tensor Core GPU in Korea, gradually expanding to meet customer demand.

Through the AI cloud services (GPUaaS), SKT aims to enable companies to develop AI services easily and at a lower cost, without needing to purchase their own GPUs, ultimately supporting the vitalization of Korea’s AI ecosystem.

Introducing ‘Edge AI’ to open a new opportunity in telco infrastructure:

SK Telecom plans to introduce ‘Edge AI,’ which can narrow the gap between AIDC and on-device AI, using the nationwide communication infrastructure.

Edge AI is an infrastructure that combines mobile communication networks and AI computing, offering advantages in reduced latency, enhanced security, and improved privacy compared to large-scale AIDCs. Additionally, it enables large-scale AI computing, complementing the existing AI infrastructure, compared to on-device AI.

SKT is currently conducting research on advanced technologies and collaborating with global partners to build AIDC-utilizing communication infrastructure and develop customized servers. The company is also carrying out various proof of concept (PoC) projects across six areas, including healthcare, AI robots, and AI CCTV, to discover specialized Edge AI services.

“So far, the competition in telecommunications infrastructure has been all about connectivity, namely speed and capacity, but now the paradigm of network evolution should be changed,” said Ryu Young-sang, CEO of SK Telecom. “The upcoming 6G will evolve into a next-generation AI infrastructure where communication and AI are integrated.”

Developing a comprehensive AIDC solution to enter global market:

SK Telecom plans to develop a comprehensive AIDC solution that combines AI semiconductors, data centers, and energy solutions through collaboration with AI companies in Korea and abroad, with the aim of entering the global market.SK Telecom aims to lead the global standardization of Edge AI and collaborate on advanced technology research, while working towards the transition to 6G AI infrastructure.

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About SK Telecom:

SK Telecom has been leading the growth of the mobile industry since 1984. Now, it is taking customer experience to new heights by extending beyond connectivity. By placing AI at the core of its business, SK Telecom is rapidly transforming into an AI company with a strong global presence. It is focusing on driving innovations in areas of AI Infrastructure, AI Transformation (AIX) and AI Service to deliver greater value for industry, society, and life.

For more information, please contact [email protected] or visit our LinkedIn page www.linkedin.com/company/sk-telecom

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References:

SKT-Samsung Electronics to Optimize 5G Base Station Performance using AI

SK Telecom (SKT) and Nokia to work on AI assisted “fiber sensing”

Huawei’s “FOUR NEW strategy” for carriers to be successful in AI era

At the 10th Ultra-Broadband Forum (UBBF 2024) in Istanbul, Turkey, James Chen, President of Huawei’s Carrier Business, delivered a speech entitled “Network+AI, Unleashing More Business Value.”

“To explore the potential of AI, the ‘FOUR NEW’ strategy — new hub, new services, new experience, and new operation is crucial. It helps carriers to expand market boundaries, foster innovative services, and enhance market competitiveness, while also optimize network O&M and achieve business success. Huawei is committed to working with global carriers and partners to unleash more business value and forge a win-win digital and intelligent future through the “FOUR NEW” strategy.”

James Chen, President of Carrier Business, Huawei, delivering a keynote speech

James Chen, President of Huawei’s Carrier Business, delivering a keynote speech

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Huawei believes that its “FOUR NEW” strategy is key to unleashing more business value through the combination of networking and AI.

  1. New Hub: The new Hub is the AI Hub for home services. The core of the AI Hub is the development of AI agents. AI agents need to connect people, things, and applications, understand and respond to the requirements of family members, control smart devices to meet family requirements, and connect AI applications to expand the boundaries of home services. The new hub helps carriers achieve business breakthroughs in the home market.
  2. New Services: Carriers enable new services and aggregate high-quality contents with AI to gradually build a home AI application ecosystem. AI not only can upgrade traditional services, such as interactive fitness and motion-sensing games, but also innovate home services, such as home service robots, health care, and education, etc. It improves quality of life and gradually builds a home AI ecosystem.
  3. New Experience: New services such as cloud gaming, live commerce, AI searches for photos and videos, are emerging one after another. These services have high requirements on network quality, including latency, uplink and downlink bandwidth, and jitter. This brings new network monetization opportunities to carriers. Carriers can seize monetization opportunities through new business models, such as latency-based charging, upstream bandwidth-based charging, and AI-function based charging. High-quality service experience requires high-quality networks. Carriers build “Premium vertical and premium horizontal” high-quality networks to support high-quality service experience and business monetization. The key to building a “Premium vertical and premium horizontal” network is to build 1 ms connections between data centers and 1 ms access to a data center.
  4. New Operation: As carriers’ network scale is getting larger, autonomous driving network is becoming more important. AI supports high-level network autonomous driving and improves network operation efficiency. Huawei’s L4 autonomous driving network based on the Telecom Foundation Model helps operators reduce customer complaints, shorten the complaint closure time, improve service provisioning efficiency, reduce the number of site visits, and accelerate fault rectification.

In the wave of digital intelligence transformation, the “FOUR NEW” strategy is not only the embodiment of network technology innovation, but also the important driving force for continuously releasing network business value. New Hub, New Services, New Experience, and New Operation support each other and together form a complete road to digital intelligence business success.

In the future, Huawei will continue to remain customer-centric, work with global carriers and partners to explore the digital intelligence era, accelerate the release of the business value of network + AI, and embrace a prosperous intelligent world.

References:

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/huawei-proposes-the-four-new-strategy-to-help-carriers-achieve-business-success-in-the-digital-and-intelligence-era-302294830.html

Huawei’s First-Half Net Profit Rose on Strong Smartphone Sales, Car Business

China Unicom-Beijing and Huawei build “5.5G network” using 3 component carrier aggregation (3CC)

Despite U.S. sanctions, Huawei has come “roaring back,” due to massive China government support and policies

Huawei to revolutionize network operations and maintenance