October 15, 2007
High Fiber | Oxford Networks chooses Bangor and Brewer for its $4 million fiber optic network expansion
Next year, businesses in downtown Bangor and Brewer will be able to ditch their dial-up, DSL and cable Internet connections for something new. That's because Lewiston-based Oxford Networks recently announced plans to wrap up a $4 million network upgrade in the Bangor area by next spring that will bring fiber optic technology directly to companies in a 34.5-mile area, offering more Internet bandwidth and all the perks that come with faster service.
Oxford Networks decided to deliver fiber-to-the-premise, or FTTP, service to Bangor and Brewer after being encouraged by the cities' growth. "We think there is a lot of economic vitality, and a lot of businesses coming in," says Matt Jancovic, marketing director for Oxford Networks.
The company's decision to expand bandwidth in Bangor and Brewer is a step forward in Maine's quest to be hooked up at high speed. So far, the state's business community at large has lagged in the high-speed Internet game. Despite extensive fiber optic backbones laced throughout the state that service some companies and schools, there are few communities where FTTP technology is widely distributed due to the expense of building its infrastructure. "Oxford Networks is doing something pretty new for Maine," says Phil Lindley, head of the ConnectMe Authority, which is in charge of promoting Internet access in underserved areas in Maine.
Indeed, Oxford Networks has become the virtual king of FTTP networks in Maine, rolling out access in Lewiston, Auburn, Norway and Paris. "There are small pockets that have the service," Jancovic says, "but we are the only one that wires up and down streets."
In 2003, the company began to build up its 60 miles of fiber optic cables in Lewiston and Auburn. Currently, Oxford Networks provides Internet, telephone and digital television to more than 17,000 customers, the majority of whom are residential.
Once Bangor and Brewer are pulled in, the company plans to expand its FTTP services to Waterville and a handful of other cities throughout Maine, connecting its customers to a 600-mile fiber backbone that reaches from Bangor to Portsmouth, according to Jancovic.
The leap into fiber has paid off. After investing $50 million to expand its network in Maine since 2000, the company has watched revenue grow from $12 million in 2000 to about $21 million in 2006, Jancovic says.
Local effect
Oxford Network's decision is good news for Bangor and Brewer. Brewers' economic development team, D'arcy Main-Boyington and Tanya Pereira, both say the 34.5-mile network could help current businesses expand and attract new companies seeking to relocate to Maine. "We've had a lot of issues in the past with businesses that have not been able to get the speed they need for their communications services," Main-Boyington says. "There's been a number of businesses that have looked at the region and felt there was not enough high-speed capacity here."
Pereira says Oxford Networks plans to sling its fiber optic wires along "business corridors," or streets with a high density of businesses. It also will build close to developing sites to service future companies. "We wanted to make sure Oxford Networks was aware of future development," she says.
For the short-term, the FTTP network will not extend to residential areas. Pricing packages for the fiber optic service will be competitive with current services, Jancovic says.
Pereira predicts that companies as small as convenience stores all the way up to large companies could benefit from the new network.
Fiber-optic technology, which transmits digital information as light waves along glass strands, is more flexible than old-school copper wires traditionally used to bring telephone and Internet services to buildings. With FTTP networks, fiber optic technology is delivered directly to a building, supplying a virtually unlimited amount of data transmission and services without causing any bottlenecks.
One of the obstacles to laying down fiber optic networks is that it requires an large initial investment. Oxford Networks will have to build new lines hooked to telephone poles, or under streets, to transmit the signals. "It is more expensive upfront," Jancovic says, but once installed, the glass can pass as much data as desired. The $4 million investment will include the cost of building the infrastructure, as well as opening a new office and terminal in either Bangor or Brewer and adding about 16 new employees to its current staff of 120.
Oxford Network's strategy makes sense, says Jeff Kagan, a telecom analyst based in Atlanta, Ga. He notes that smaller companies often step into out-of-the-way markets overlooked by bigger companies focusing on highly competitive metropolitan markets.
But smaller companies also run risks because they don't have the capital and history of larger telecommunications firms, Kagan points out. What's more, smaller companies can't deploy the same resources to tackle challenges as can larger companies. "If there is a quality issue, then they don't necessarily have the people to fix the problem, or to find the problem quickly," he says.
Those risks don't phase Jancovic. He says that Oxford Networks can immediately respond to glitches because the network is entirely company owned and managed, allowing a team to be dispatched to fix its own equipment without relying on a middleman. And being a small company allows Oxford to create tailor-made packages for customers.
"A company will say, 'I need Internet and telephone,' and that will be the end of the conversation for them," Jancovic says. "But it is the beginning of the conversation for us. We dig into details, like, 'Why do you want this, what will you do with services, where do you want to go?'"
Oxford Networks decided to deliver fiber-to-the-premise, or FTTP, service to Bangor and Brewer after being encouraged by the cities' growth. "We think there is a lot of economic vitality, and a lot of businesses coming in," says Matt Jancovic, marketing director for Oxford Networks.
The company's decision to expand bandwidth in Bangor and Brewer is a step forward in Maine's quest to be hooked up at high speed. So far, the state's business community at large has lagged in the high-speed Internet game. Despite extensive fiber optic backbones laced throughout the state that service some companies and schools, there are few communities where FTTP technology is widely distributed due to the expense of building its infrastructure. "Oxford Networks is doing something pretty new for Maine," says Phil Lindley, head of the ConnectMe Authority, which is in charge of promoting Internet access in underserved areas in Maine.
Indeed, Oxford Networks has become the virtual king of FTTP networks in Maine, rolling out access in Lewiston, Auburn, Norway and Paris. "There are small pockets that have the service," Jancovic says, "but we are the only one that wires up and down streets."
In 2003, the company began to build up its 60 miles of fiber optic cables in Lewiston and Auburn. Currently, Oxford Networks provides Internet, telephone and digital television to more than 17,000 customers, the majority of whom are residential.
Once Bangor and Brewer are pulled in, the company plans to expand its FTTP services to Waterville and a handful of other cities throughout Maine, connecting its customers to a 600-mile fiber backbone that reaches from Bangor to Portsmouth, according to Jancovic.
The leap into fiber has paid off. After investing $50 million to expand its network in Maine since 2000, the company has watched revenue grow from $12 million in 2000 to about $21 million in 2006, Jancovic says.
Local effect
Oxford Network's decision is good news for Bangor and Brewer. Brewers' economic development team, D'arcy Main-Boyington and Tanya Pereira, both say the 34.5-mile network could help current businesses expand and attract new companies seeking to relocate to Maine. "We've had a lot of issues in the past with businesses that have not been able to get the speed they need for their communications services," Main-Boyington says. "There's been a number of businesses that have looked at the region and felt there was not enough high-speed capacity here."
Pereira says Oxford Networks plans to sling its fiber optic wires along "business corridors," or streets with a high density of businesses. It also will build close to developing sites to service future companies. "We wanted to make sure Oxford Networks was aware of future development," she says.
For the short-term, the FTTP network will not extend to residential areas. Pricing packages for the fiber optic service will be competitive with current services, Jancovic says.
Pereira predicts that companies as small as convenience stores all the way up to large companies could benefit from the new network.
Fiber-optic technology, which transmits digital information as light waves along glass strands, is more flexible than old-school copper wires traditionally used to bring telephone and Internet services to buildings. With FTTP networks, fiber optic technology is delivered directly to a building, supplying a virtually unlimited amount of data transmission and services without causing any bottlenecks.
One of the obstacles to laying down fiber optic networks is that it requires an large initial investment. Oxford Networks will have to build new lines hooked to telephone poles, or under streets, to transmit the signals. "It is more expensive upfront," Jancovic says, but once installed, the glass can pass as much data as desired. The $4 million investment will include the cost of building the infrastructure, as well as opening a new office and terminal in either Bangor or Brewer and adding about 16 new employees to its current staff of 120.
Oxford Network's strategy makes sense, says Jeff Kagan, a telecom analyst based in Atlanta, Ga. He notes that smaller companies often step into out-of-the-way markets overlooked by bigger companies focusing on highly competitive metropolitan markets.
But smaller companies also run risks because they don't have the capital and history of larger telecommunications firms, Kagan points out. What's more, smaller companies can't deploy the same resources to tackle challenges as can larger companies. "If there is a quality issue, then they don't necessarily have the people to fix the problem, or to find the problem quickly," he says.
Those risks don't phase Jancovic. He says that Oxford Networks can immediately respond to glitches because the network is entirely company owned and managed, allowing a team to be dispatched to fix its own equipment without relying on a middleman. And being a small company allows Oxford to create tailor-made packages for customers.
"A company will say, 'I need Internet and telephone,' and that will be the end of the conversation for them," Jancovic says. "But it is the beginning of the conversation for us. We dig into details, like, 'Why do you want this, what will you do with services, where do you want to go?'"
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