As previously announced, Zayo paid $15.9 million for USCarrier, a figure that includes $2.3 million to retire USCarrier's outstanding debt.
The service provider said it funded the acquisition of USCarrier with cash on hand
By acquiring USCarrier, Zayo deepens its fiber network presence in the Southeast United States with an additional 3,700-mile regional fiber network that connects a number of key markets including Atlanta, Jacksonville, Fla., Tallahassee, Fla., Nashville, Tenn., and Chattanooga, Tenn.
But this transaction isn't just about the NFL cities alone.
In addition to the Tier 1 markets, USCarrier has a presence in 40 other smaller cities and towns such as Macon and Savannah, Ga., and Mobile and Montgomery, Ala. What's more, Zayo will be able to use USCarrier assets to extend connectivity into Nashville, a market where it already has network presence.
"At this point--and really over the course of its life--each new fiber network acquisition operated by Zayo plugs another hole in its reach and depth," said Craig Clausen, executive vice president of New Paradigm Resources Group, Inc. (NPRG), in an e-mail to FierceTelecom. "USCarrier has nice reach throughout the SE--an important economic region."
Clausen added that "there's a fair amount of fiber deployment by smaller niche entities going on in this area too (i.e., Blue Ridge Mountain EMC - brmemc.com) that will provide further opportunities for Zayo."
This acquisition provides benefits to both existing USCarrier and Zayo customers. Existing USCarrier customers will be able to offer additional Ethernet and wavelength transport services in addition to expanding other services such as IP-based services and wholesale dark fiber.
