OMUfibernet highlighted for fiber to the home pilot venture

OMU was recently highlighted for its Fiber-to-the-Home pilot program (OMUfibernet) in articles featured on CNN Money and Market Watch.

10 New Municipalities Launch Fiber Networks with Calix

Owensboro Municipal Utilities headlines mushrooming interest in community broadband

SAN DIEGO, CA – September 8, 2015 – Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX), the world leader in gigabit fiber deployments, today announced 10 new municipal broadband providers have partnered with Calix to support their network rollouts. Fiber plays a critical role in fostering community competitiveness and improving the quality of life. Across the country, municipalities and municipally-owned utilities are recognizing the importance of fiber based gigabit services for economic viability and using concepts like economic gardening to help home-grown businesses grow and thrive.

One such example is Owensboro Municipal Utilities (OMU) in Kentucky. The largest municipal electric and water system in the state, OMU has delivered water and electric services to Owensboro for 115 years. OMU has also offered commercial broadband services for more than 20 years throughout the community. Branded as OMUfibernet, OMU’s commercial service packages were so successful that it is now embarking on a new fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) pilot project for more than 500 homes, which includes a gigabit broadband service option enabled by the Calix E7-2 Ethernet Services Access Platform (ESAP) and 844G GigaCenters.

“By delivering broadband services to residents via a fiber infrastructure, OMU will be able to provide Internet speeds never seen in our community,” said Christopher Poynter, telecommunications superintendent at OMU. “Through partnering with Calix and utilizing the Carrier Class Wi-Fi of the GigaCenters, we will be able to deliver the best possible user experience for our subscribers. We hope this project will find a great reception and become the launching point for OMU to expand residential fiber services across Owensboro.”

The transformation in Owensboro is representative of what is taking place across the country in underserved communities. Calix is proud to be a key partner in over 50 community networks, with these 10 new communities spanning six different states. Some of these communities have chosen to focus on businesses and anchor institutions, others, like Owensboro, are now expanding into residential:

  • Concord Municipal Light Plant (CMLP) – After starting with a fiber fed smart grid deployment, the Concord, Massachusetts community owned utility has expanded into business and residential services.
  • Erwin Utilities – With an initial residential pilot on track to surpass its take rate goals, the city-owned utility of Erwin, Tennessee will double its FTTH footprint in the coming months with plans to expand gigabit broadband and voice services throughout its electrical serving area within five years.
  • Holyoke Gas & Electric (HG&E) – This Massachusetts community has a long history of broadband services and is now using the Calix E7-2 for providing business services. HG&E also manages the residential deployment in nearby Leverett, MA as that community continues to roll out gigabit broadband service.
  • Hudson, Ohio – Dubbed Velocity Broadband, the City of Hudson has announced an initial pilot project for commercial customers in the Executive Parkway area, which included gigabit services, with plans to expand into other business areas in 2016.
  • Ontario, California – In southern California, the City of Ontario is delivering its first residential fiber broadband services, including managed Wi-Fi, to the New Model Colony community while looking towards reaching new greenfield areas with fiber services in the future.
  • Shrewsbury Electric and Cable Operations (SELCO) – With a strong history delivering triple-play services over a cable infrastructure, Massachusetts’ SELCO will expand into fiber broadband services in new residential areas.
  • Sun Prairie Utility – After serving businesses and multi-dwelling units with broadband services for years, Wisconsin’s Sun Prairie Utility is growing into fiber-based services in new single family residences.
  • Taunton Municipal Lighting Plant (TMLP Online) – Another example of the growth of municipal broadband in Massachusetts, TMLP Online is delivering symmetrical Internet speeds to residents and businesses in Taunton.
  • Waverly Utilities – With construction just underway in Iowa, Waverly Utilities is planning to bring gigabit broadband services, including video and voice offerings to residents in the Waverly community.

“Whether offering business or residential services or a combination of both, we have seen how municipal fiber networks have the power to transform a community,” said John Colvin, senior vice president of North American sales at Calix. “Each of these 10 communities can make a significant impact in stimulating the economy of the town they serve and the surrounding area. These networks can be the catalyst to bring about positive community change and innovation.”

To learn more about how Calix is enabling community transformation through municipal fiber networks, visit the Calix booth at the NATOA Annual Conference this week in San Diego and in Booth 33, at the Broadband Communities/FTTH Council Economic Development Summit in Lexington, KY next week.