There’s a new fiber internet provider launching soon in the Pacific Northwest.
Ziply Fiber is set to provider fiber service across Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana as its $1.35 billion deal to acquire the Northwest operations of internet and TV provider Frontier Communications nears completion.
The deal was first announced this past May. The Washington State Utilities and Transportation Commission approved a settlement in the sale last month.
WaveDivision Capital, an investment company operated by the founder of Wave Broadband and several former executives, teamed up with Searchlight Capital Partners to make the purchase.
Despite the similar names, WaveDivision and Wave Broadband are not related. Both were founded by telecommunications entrepreneur Steve Weed, who was CEO of Wave Broadband when it was acquired for $2.36 billion in 2018. Weed, along with several other executives at the company, departed following the acquisition.
Ziply Fiber will be led by Harold Zeitz, the former president of Wave Broadband and managing director at WaveDivision Capital. Weed is the chairman of Ziply.
The Kirkland, Wash.-based company plans to invest $100 million to improve is services and build out fiber projects.
“We’re building the most advanced fiber network anywhere and combining the speed and reliability it offers with refreshingly great service,” Zeitz said in a statement.
Ziply will compete with Wave Broadband, Comcast, and Charter — all three offer broadband internet services in the Pacific Northwest.
It will start with 270,000 residential and 25,000 commercial internet subscribers that carried over from the Frontier deal.
Frontier Northwest operations were responsible for $619 million in revenue and $46 million in net profits for the year ending in March 2019.
Ziply retained nearly 1,000 employees from Frontier and will hire another 200 people. It will have additional offices in Everett, Wash.; Beaverton, Ore.; and Hayden, Idaho. Other executives include COO Brian Stading, a former Centurylink exec; CTO Bambang Liem, a former Wave Broadband exec; CFO Wayne Schattenkerk; another former Wave exec; and Chief Legal Officer Byron Springer, another former Wave Broadband exec.
