Jeff DeMond believes in the power of fiber and in super-serving the customers who buy internet and phone service on it. The longtime cable executive, whose roots go back to Bresnan Communications in the 1980s, is the chairman and CEO of Archtop Fiber, which recently completed a third acquisition in a five-month span of regional phone carriers in the mid-Hudson Valley area of New York state. In between, he was CEO of Vyve Broadband, another startup that saw value in buying broadband providers in rural markets, upgrading them and upselling customers where good internet was lagging. He recently fielded questions from B+C Multichannel News content director Kent Gibbons about Archtop’s aims and goals and why delivering multi-gig internet is a business worth investing in at a time when cords are being cut but broadband demand is high.
Despite video cord-cutting, do you see good opportunities to invest in internet and phone service via fiber? Cord-cutting creates an incredible opportunity to invest in fiber internet and phone service. More and more people are using streaming services for entertainment, requiring a fast and reliable internet connection. In less than a decade, the volume of internet-dependent devices in households is expected to double, numbering in the billions. Combined with the rising number of simultaneous streams available, multi-gig Internet becomes more of a necessity than a luxury. Communication in the form of videoconferencing is also on the rise, which depends on fast upload speeds, which fiber enables. Overall, the tech we need for work and play will constantly need faster Internet speeds and greater bandwidth and fiber is future-proof — we’ve got the speeds needed to support the needs for today with plenty to spare and the ability to scale up to deliver what everyone will need in the future.
What characteristics does Archtop Fiber look for in the companies and communities you invest in? We look for companies that are deeply rooted in their communities with a strong record of customer service. We love working with local businesses, employing local team members, and becoming an integral tech partner and neighbor to provide underserved areas with new and unlimited possibilities that, before now, were unattainable. I founded Archtop along with a group of longtime friends and leading industry veterans who have decades of experience building and operating world-class Internet networks in areas that have been neglected or overlooked by other providers. We all share the vision of identifying such communities and bringing the latest and greatest tech to them.
First job in cable? I met Bill Bresnan in 1984 … I joined him as his senior financial exec in 1985. Bill passed away in 2009. I was then CEO, and we sold Bresnan Communications in 2010. My first and longest cable job thanks to Bill.
Shows on your watchlist? None, really. I bounce between C-SPAN and PBS NewsHour (pictured), the Tennis Channel and a few other regulars.
What apps do you use the most? Too many! Spotify, newspapers, YouTube, sports, social media, banks, thermostats … I have an overly app-driven existence!
Books on your nightstand? Constant changing rotation — today, Differ We Must (How Lincoln Succeeded in a Divided America) by Steve Inskeep; Democracy Awakening by Heather Cox Richardson; Freezing Order by Bill Browder; several jazz guitar books.
Where would you like to vacation? Places I’ve never been in the U.S. for a change: Sedona, Arizona, or similar dramatic, regal, peaceful places.
How do you assess the competitive environment either from wireless 5G or other big or small providers in your markets? It’s not something that keeps me up at night. The service we will deliver with our 100% fiber network is unmatched in the communities we are moving into. In terms of reliability, sustainability, speed and cost, our network will be a game-changer for these areas and deliver a service no one else is offering currently.
How hands-on do you get with the companies that Archtop acquires? We are picky when it comes to who we work with, so we chose companies that are already well-established and well-run. As these companies are integrated into the Archtop Fiber family, it’s an easy transition because they share values similar to ours, and we’re all working hand in hand on the optimizations we’re looking to deliver. We collaborate closely with the teams on the ground day to day to ensure we’re delivering the quality customer experiences that we all aim to achieve.
What are your goals for how big Archtop Fiber can become? Our primary goal is to bring high-speed fiber Internet to underserved communities in New York’s Hudson Valley and the greater Northeast. The growth we achieve through that process is an added bonus to our mission of bridging the digital divide and delivering equity to these areas. That being said, many communities have been overlooked for too long and lack the necessary infrastructure to truly take advantage of the digital opportunities that exist today. We have outlined a roadmap to serve these communities with a network spanning from the eastern Pennsylvania border to western Massachusetts. Archtop’s network is expected to reach over 500,000 households and local businesses, bringing tech-driven opportunities, economic growth and jobs along with it. What makes it even more exciting is that our journey has really just begun. Archtop is poised to have an extraordinary impact on the communities it serves. From homes to businesses to schools, the work we are doing will open up doors of opportunity and growth that before now were
not possible.
