- Everyone has been waiting for billions to flow into the fiber ecosystem from BEAD
- Middle-mile networks are seeing the first of the major green stuff and trickling it down to vendors
- A deal between the Alabama Fiber Network and Arista is the latest example
Money is beginning to really flow into the U.S. fiber ecosystem, but the dollars are coming from a somewhat unexpected source – middle-mile and long-haul fiber projects. Case in point: Today the Alabama Fiber Network (AFN) struck a deal with Arista Networks to secure routing and switching equipment for its 6,600-mile open-access, middle-mile network.
Arista’s bread and butter is mainly providing routers and switches for data centers. But Mark Foss, SVP of Global Operations and Marketing for Arista, told Fierce Network, “Data center switching is our core market, but Ethernet is a ubiquitous technology that spans many different markets and applications. This particular application is ‘middle mile,’ which is a service-provider application that utilizes Arista 7280s in a regional packet/optical network.”
AFN also just recently announced that it selected Ciena as its optical networking vendor for the middle-mile project.
AFN CEO Terry Metze said the Arista and Ciena equipment combined is costing AFN nearly $11 million in the initial phases of the project.
AFN is a consortium of eight electric cooperatives that are building a sprawling middle-mile network to support other service providers and community anchor institutions. Ultimately, the middle-mile network will help connect all the last-mile networks that will be built with Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) funds. The network will reach all 67 counties in Alabama.
The electric co-op consortium received $340 million in state funds to build the network. Metze broke down the awards, saying the group initially received $82 million from Alabama. Then it received two Alabama Anchor Institution/Middle-Mile Program (AIMM) grants worth $152 million. In addition, owners and partners have contributed $106 million for matching fiber routes.
The first customer on the first phase of the network was lit with fiber on July 10.
“Our next major target is February 2025 when a substantial portion of the middle-mile network will go live,” said Metze. “The entire project is targeted for 100% final completion by October 2026.”
In terms of being an open-access network, he said, “As we interconnect and interface with Alabama local broadband providers, we are deploying an open architecture to serve all high-capacity broadband users. With local last-mile providers we will serve, through them, any wholesale, wireless carrier, education, medical and government entities.”
Middle-mile (and even last-mile) are sexy again
While the industry waits in anticipation for BEAD funds to start flowing to ISPs who will build last-mile networks, middle-mile and long-haul networks are having a moment.
At last week’s Fiber Connect show in Nashville, Joe Pellegrini, president and COO with Great Plains Communications, said the service provider is looking to monetize its middle-mile network any way it can. That could include deals to deliver fiber-to-the-home, fiber-to-the-cell-tower and fiber to enterprises and data centers.
And this week, Lumen breathed new excitement into its business after it announced on its Q2 2024 earnings that it secured $5 billion in new business to connect data centers. It also said it’s close to securing another $7 billion in sales to meet long-haul transport needs of data center customers.
Lumen said last week that it had hired Corning for a large supply of fiber equipment. Check out our story on how AI could boost Lumen's network business here.