It looks like communications giant Verizon is going to buy Dallas-based Frontier Communications in a multi-billion dollar deal.
Frontier relocated its headquarters to Dallas in 2023. It is now the largest pure-play fiber internet provider in the United States, offering fiber internet to residential and business customers.
The company serves over 2.2 million fiber subscribers across 25 states. After emerging from bankruptcy in 2021, it invested $4.1 billion to upgrade its network. Frontier’s annual revenue in 2023 was approximately $5.8 billion, with more than 50% coming from fiber products.
Here is some of what the Associated Press reported on the acquisition:
Verizon is buying Frontier Communications in a $20 billion deal to strengthen its fiber network.
Verizon Communications Inc. said Thursday that the acquisition will also shore up its foray into artificial intelligence as well as connected smart devices.
Frontier has concentrated heavily on its fiber network capabilities over about four years, investing $4.1 billion upgrading and expanding its fiber network. It now gets more than half of its revenue from fiber products.
The price tag for Frontier, based in Dallas, is sizeable given its 2.2 million fiber subscribers across 25 states. Verizon has approximately 7.4 million Fios connections in nine states and Washington, D.C.
Frontier has 7.2 million fiber locations and has plans to build out an additional 2.8 million fiber locations by the end of 2026.
“The acquisition of Frontier is a strategic fit,” Verizon Chairman and CEO Hans Vestberg said in a prepared statement. “It will build on Verizon’s two decades of leadership at the forefront of fiber and is an opportunity to become more competitive in more markets throughout the United States, enhancing our ability to deliver premium offerings to millions more customers across a combined fiber network.”