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Frontier Communications, mired in $18 billion in debt, is preparing to sell a package of landline assets in California, Texas, and Florida the company acquired just two years ago in a $10.5 billion deal.
A Bloomberg News report indicated the sale is part of an effort to boost available funds and repair a damaged business plan that has left the company with a massive debt load and an ongoing departure of customers unhappy with Frontier’s products and services.
Frontier has posted falling revenue for the last five consecutive quarters and the company has spent much of 2017 attempting to borrow more money and refinance the debt it already has, accumulated in part from its acquisitions of sold-off wireline assets owned by AT&T (Connecticut) and Verizon (multiple states).
Frontier has a poor record of successfully transferring customers to the company’s billing and backend systems, which has often caused service disruptions and billing errors. Bad publicity followed Frontier in Texas, Florida and California where the company acquired 3.7 million new voice lines, 2.2 million broadband customers, and 1.2 million FiOS accounts.
What makes Frontier’s properties in those three states valuable is the widespread availability of fiber-to-the-home service. Potential buyers, including private equity firms and other non-traditional bidders, see a future in providing valuable fiber backhaul connectivity to forthcoming 5G wireless networks, which require fiber connections deep into neighborhoods to connect small cell technology with the provider’s network.
Bloomberg reports the assets are likely to be split up and sold in parts, instead of a single package. That could mean Frontier will sell off each state independently or the split could be based on technology, with fiber assets sold separately from Frontier’s acquired copper wire networks in the three states. Frontier may have trouble finding buyers for legacy copper service areas that have never been upgraded with fiber optic service. Frontier is also increasingly unlikely to upgrade those areas itself.
the short term greed of Wall Street is to blame. Look at the former CEO of Verizon Ivan Seidenberg who was ousted by greedy wall street investors when he planned on upgrading all of the company’s copper wireline to fiber. They didn’t want any of these telecoms to upgrade their networks to next generation future proof fixed wireline and are now wondering why as stupid stool pigeons these frankenstein telecoms Frontier, CenturyLink, Windstream, Cincinnati Bell and Consolidated subscribers are feeling to cable. This goes to show Phillip that mergers and acquisitions have limits and hurtful consequences not just for the… Read more »
The hilarious part of all this is that regulation would of saved the lion share of these companies. If the company would of been “Forced” to upgrade there plant they would of had a viable scapegoat to do so. Then they would of been at least competitive. At this point all these DSL copper companies can not compete and the only thing that saves them is the duopolies and monopolies. When/if 5G becomes a viable home internet thing these companies will be struggling even more. Selling these failures will ultimately good for Frontier if they use that money properly. They… Read more »
Not surprised. Frontier Fios has totally ruined the view experience for those of us in Texas. Particularly those in the Dallas / Fort Worth area. How? They were not ready when they took over the business from Verizon Fios. After 2 years, things are STILL messed up and I still don’t have the services that I had with Verizon Fios. AND, to top it off, they raise their rates every opportunity they get. Not honoring the contracts that the viewers had with Verizon Fios. I had a 5 year contract with Verizon, which I setup in 2014. However, when Frontier… Read more »
Never heard of a five year contract only 2yr. Lol.
I am 67 years old and this is the worst company I have ever dealt with in my life. I live in Dallas also. The two comments above are exactly what is going on. It has been horrible. I wonder how many millions the CEO is making. I hope they go down in flames. My experiences have been that they are crooks. We need some kind of regulation on these unscrupulous companies.
Personally i think all these rich guys dont really give a s**t. They got thier nice cars nice homes a good hot yummy meal too eat 3 times a day, nice clothes, money’s that always line thier wallets too spend on what ever they want weather they need it or not.and thier phones electronics are going too work just fine for them no matter what…. while all us little webble wabbles of life will just wabble around until they all get what the higher class wants and us poor folks wobbling around will just have too suffer it out. And… Read more »
Leave Florida now Frontier before the state regulators remove you. You are worthless as a company!!