Point Broadband Fiber Holding, LLC, a provider to rural areas and small cities in nine states, said that it is getting a “significant growth investment from funds affiliated with Berkshire Partners.”
The size of the investment and other details were not included.
Point Broadband, which was formed in 2017, provides multi-gigabit broadband to about 75,000 customers in Michigan, Ohio, New York, Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama and Texas.
The company gained backing from the private equity firm GTCR in 2021.
“As we continue to prioritize growth and extend access to our 100 percent fiber optic internet service, the sector expertise and resources Berkshire Partners brings in digital infrastructure are the perfect fit to help expand our reach and bring quality service to customers in underserved markets,” Point Broadband CEO Todd Holt said in a press release about the investment by Berkshire. “Together with our continued partnership with GTCR, this investment will accelerate the deployment of our all-fiber Gigabit broadband solutions to a wider array of residential and business customers in rural communities.”
Point Broadband has at times tapped government funding for rural deployments.
The company won funding in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction, which it received in 2021.
In addition, the company, along with the Mount Rogers Planning District Commission, was awarded $7,870,000 by the Virginia Telecommunications Initiative (VATI) for the extension of a broadband network in Smyth, Washington, and Wythe counties and the town of Damascus. The awards were announced in March, 2021.
The provider also worked with the Miami Valley Communications Council to extend its central Ohio Footprint and bring FTTH to Centerville, Kettering, Miamisburg, Moraine, Oakwood, Springboro and West Carrollton. The goal was to provide symmetrical services up to 10 Gbps.
Other current Berkshire communications and digital infrastructure investments include telecom analytics company OpenSignal and edge data center operator Vapor.
