Pointers at Glance
- UTOPIA Fiber added over 550 miles of fiber and twice as many residential subscribers in 2022 compared to 2021, with plans to accelerate its expansion efforts in 2023.
- The open access network provider has built a total of 4,387 miles of fiber across its markets and enables speeds up to 10 Gbps, with plans to see a significant increase in uptake for 10Gig service in 2023 due to various factors, including remote work and availability of consumer-grade devices.
Open access network provider UTOPIA Fiber saw significant growth in 2022, adding over 550 miles of fiber and twice as many residential subscribers compared to 2021. The company laid around 3 million feet of fiber last year, marking a substantial jump from the 2.4 million feet deployed in 2021.
Strong Relationships With Contractors and Suppliers Help UTOPIA Fiber Increase The Deployment Pace
CMO Kim McKinley attributes the success to the company’s relationships with contractors and suppliers, stating that these partnerships helped scale the business more easily.
UTOPIA has built a total of 4,387 miles of fiber across its markets to date and is planning to accelerate its pace of deployment with new cities and projects in 2023. However, McKinley declined to specify how many markets or which states the company would be targeting for activity.
Expansion and Market Coverage Of UTOPIA Fiber In 2022
- While UTOPIA’s build was a fraction of the 60,000 miles of fiber AT&T built in 2022, the company has a smaller footprint, operating in just four states compared to AT&T’s 21.
- The company completed builds in 14 cities across Utah, Idaho, and Montana in 2022, including its 11 founding markets.
- Additionally, UTOPIA signed a deployment agreement with its 20th city in Utah last year.
UTOPIA Fiber’s 2022 Accomplishments and Plans For 2023
UTOPIA added more than 20,000 gigabit customers in 2022, with at least 19,000 of these residential, more than double the 7,479 residential customers added in 2021.
The company’s networks allow its 15 ISP partners to provide speed tiers of up to 10 Gbps, and it added nearly 400 10-gig subscribers last year, with the vast majority of these residential customers. McKinley predicts a significant increase in uptake for the 10Gig service in 2023 due to gaming, employers paying for their employees’ internet service while working from home, and the availability of more consumer-grade 10-Gig routers and devices.
UTOPIA Fiber was founded in 2004 by a consortium of 11 cities in Utah and is officially known as the Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency. It is a sister entity to the Utah Infrastructure Agency. Completing builds in its 11 founding markets marked a major milestone for the company. These cities remained committed to UTOPIA despite early-year turbulence and eventual turnaround in 2009, according to Executive Director Roger Timmerman.
