When the Wireless Infrastructure Association’s (WIA) annual “View from the Top” presentation kicked off at yesterday’s Dallas, Tex. conference, audio problems kept the packed audience craning their necks for about 10 minutes to hear what was being said. But when WIA President and CEO Jonathan Adelstein restarted the session from the beginning, it was crystal clear to attendees that 2016 …
TowerCo eyes new acquisitions and build-to-suits after its $244 million tower sale to Grain
Company officials at TowerCo have announced the sale of 253 towers and 95 other assets to Grain Infrastructure II, L.P., a private equity firm in Sarasota, Fla., for $244 million. The sale marks the third portfolio of towers and assets sold by TowerCo since 2008 when the company sold 430 towers to SBA Communications for $193.5 million. The sale elevates …
Blue Sky gets additional funding as Vertical Bridge gets an additional 275 towers
Peppertree Capital Management has increased its funding commitment to Blue Sky Towers from $80 million to $120 million as towerco Vertical Bridge and General Communication, Inc. also announced today that they have signed an agreement to acquire 275 sites from GCI’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Alaska Wireless Network (AWN). “We are very proud of our accomplishments to date and consider ourselves fortunate to …
An engineer’s report has officials on edge over a possible tower failure
UPDATE: May 4, 2016 – Paulding, Ohio village officials have determined that a 400′ guyed tower is not a danger to the community after reviewing a second engineer’s report, and have opened Fairground Rd. As suspected, the reported overloads were due to the fact that the newer ANSI/TIA-222-G standard includes more stringent ice requirements, compared to the 222-F standard which was …
Wireless industry tackles needed improvements for failing safety climb systems
Officials from the Telecommunications Industry Registered Apprenticeship Program (TIRAP), which aims to promote worker safety, quality and efficiency within the wireless infrastructure industry, gathered representatives from wireless carriers, tower companies and safety climb system equipment manufacturers to hold a Safety Equipment Manufacturers Summit to maximize the critical role safety climb equipment plays in protecting climbers. The purpose of the gathering …
Tower capacity concerns recognized at CCA’s keynote discussion
While all panelists agreed at yesterday’s Competitive Carriers Association’s Mobile Carriers Show keynote discussion in Nashville that unlicensed spectrum use by carriers was already in play, with subscribers using Wi-Fi connections, C Spire CTO Stephen Bye said carriers would have to be aggressive in making the experience better for consumers. “Unlicensed has an important role in the delivery of services, …
Four-tower $75-million deal still on hold as developer grapples with NIMBY group
Update: June 24, 2020 — In a formal announcement on June 24, 2020, Cumulus confirmed that it has closed on the sale of its parcel of land in Bethesda to Toll Brothers. It’s a $74.1 million deal that is expected to generate proceeds of $71.3 million. Residents impacted by the proposed sale of a 75-acre Bethesda, Md. tract that is the home …
Crown Castle emerges as number one in the U.S. with their TDC 336 tower deal
Crown Castle International Corp.has announced that it acquired Tower Development Corporation (“TDC”) for approximately $461 million in cash. TDC, a portfolio company of Berkshire Partners, owns and operates 336 towers in the U.S. and Puerto Rico with an average tenancy of approximately two tenants per tower. The deal puts Crown Castle as the largest tower owner in the U.S., although …
For ATC India it’s 56,000 towers and corporate responsibility projects
American Tower Corporation received approval from the Indian government yesterday to buy a 51% interest in Viom Networks, an independent mobile tower company in India, for $880 million. Establishing its presence in India in 2007, ATC India has approximately 14,000 towers in the country, but with the Viom deal it will take control of an additional 42,000 towers, putting its …
FCC auction has kicked off with NAB and NATE still ticked off
The Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) auction to buy spectrum from television stations, repack the spectrum, and then sell it to wireless providers, kicked off yesterday with broadcasters having to make a commitment as to whether and how they would participate. But a 39-month post auction deadline is seen as too compressed by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB). And the …
Communications Sales & Leasing to purchase 32 of Windstream’s towers
Communications Sales & Leasing, Inc. (CS&L) today announced that they have entered into an agreement with Windstream Holdings, Inc. to acquire 32 wireless towers owned by Windstream and operating rights for 49 wireless towers previously conveyed to the company in its spin-off from Windstream in April of last year. With a portfolio of 81 towers after closing, CS&L will rank …
One Georgia tower down while another planned structure heads to court
Tower developer Municipal Communications LLC took Cobb County, Ga. officials to court last week for having an “impossible condition” placed upon it for a new 190-foot monopole, when the county asked it to move the structure 300 feet – while in Screven County, a tower decided to move hundreds of feet on its own when it collapsed yesterday. Although there …
New site projections see a modest increase in 2016 for the tower industry
In RBC Capital Markets’ latest network and site leasing update, analysts Jonathan Atkin, Bryan Hyun and Bora Lee are projecting a modest improvement in leasing in the second half of 2016 from 2015 with Verizon and T-Mobile remaining the most active carriers. Their report said that AT&T’s site additions should remain below the 1,000 mark at approximately 600. They expect …
Popular analyst’s tower sector downgrade will be tested in coming weeks
Commentary It almost appears that journalists have keyboard reader software on Wells Fargo analyst Jennifer Fritzsche’s computer since as soon as she writes something – even a knee-jerk observation – it instantly appears in the media as unchallenged sacred telecom guidance. So it was no surprise when Fritzsche downgraded the tower sector on Friday that it would be picked up …
American Tower’s CEO isn’t struggling after not receiving a raise in many years
James D. Taiclet, Jr., Chairman of the Board and CEO of American Tower Corp. (ATC), hasn’t received a raise again with his $1.1 million salary for 2016, but it is likely he is not complaining since his compensation committee takes care of him with handsome perks – and perhaps, rightfully so. Although his salary hasn’t increased in at least three years, …
Alpha Media balloons with new stations as it sheds its unmarketed towers to Vertical Bridge
Tower owner Vertical Bridge has announced that it has acquired close to 200 towers from Alpha Media, although no financial terms of the transaction were disclosed in a press announcement. The portfolio consists of 113 new sites, many with AM arrays accounting for the additional 87 towers announced in the deal. The acquisition, according to Wireless Estimator’s Tower Owners List, …
Digital Bridge seen as top contender in $2 billion Saudi Arabia Mobily deal
During a panel discussion last week during NATE UNITE 2016 in New Orleans, La., Robert Paige, Senior Vice President of M&A for Vertical Bridge, the cell tower leasing arm of Digital Bridge LLC, said that more than adequate capital is available for the industry to expand, stating that the amount was seen as “mind boggling”. And if a Bloomberg Business …
A bright future predicted for wireless work by leading industry experts at NATE UNITE 2016
As three leading industry experts gazed into their crystal balls Tuesday during their NATE UNITE 2016 presentation, “The Future of the Wireless Industry,” their consensus indicated a robust build program that could last for more than a decade. However, Clayton Funk of Media Venture Partners, Christopher Fisher, Cuddy & Feder LLP; and Robert Paige, Vertical Bridge, cautioned National Association of …
Crown Castle’s chief, Ben Moreland, to hand the reins over to CFO Jay Brown
The CEO of Crown Castle International Corp. will retire effective June 1, 2016, the Houston, Tex.-based wireless communications infrastructure provider announced yesterday during its analysts conference call. Ben Moreland will leave as the company’s president and CEO, but remain executive vice chairman of the board of directors. Jay Brown, the organization’s CFO will become president and CEO. Brown, a certified …
Sprint provides a sound thrashing to Re/code for their scoop that duped journalists, tanking stocks
Sprint: Towercos have nothing to worry about – for now At two conference calls this morning, Sprint said that an article by tech website Re/code on Jan. 15, 2016, was not accurate, and Sprint CEO Marcelo Claure, during a media call, said the misinformation regarding a Sprint radical network overhaul “caused a lot of damage”. Re/code had claimed, according to …
