Updated
Updated · PR Newswire · Jun 22
Nextlink Expands Aviat Deal for $180 Million BEAD Broadband Buildout
Updated
Updated · PR Newswire · Jun 22

Nextlink Expands Aviat Deal for $180 Million BEAD Broadband Buildout

3 articles · Updated · PR Newswire · Jun 22

Summary

  • Nextlink widened its existing pact with Aviat Networks to deploy BABA-compliant microwave, E-Band and multi-band equipment for a BEAD-funded rural broadband expansion across 12 central U.S. states.
  • More than $180 million in BEAD funding is backing the buildout, which Nextlink said will connect thousands of unserved and underserved locations while lowering network ownership costs and helping it stay on schedule.
  • The expansion builds on Nextlink's recently activated first BEAD-funded wireless tower and adds to the company's earlier $429.2 million FCC Rural Digital Opportunity Fund award.
  • Nextlink already serves more than 100,000 subscribers, operates over 2,600 towers and has invested more than $1 billion, underscoring how federal funding is accelerating its broader push to close the rural digital divide.

Insights

As federal policy favors wireless, is America building a future-proof internet or just a cheaper one for now?
A fight over radio spectrum is brewing. Could it sabotage new internet service for millions in rural America?