News and Blog

Having surpassed 2,000 lit buildings, an increase of over 170% since 2019, Skywire welcomes Tom Gambino to its leadership team. Tom joins as COO and will oversee the company’s residential and commercial network, engineering and business operations.

The article below was published on Cision / PR Newswire.

I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Jennifer Fritzsche for iGR, a market strategy consultancy focused on the wireless and mobile communications industry. 

The article below was published on PRWEB.

Skywire Networks, one of NYC’s fastest growing ISP’s, having lit nearly 2,000 NYC Metro buildings, is excited to announce that it has added two newly served neighborhoods: the East Village and the Lower East Side of Manhattan, to the 50+ neighborhoods that the company serves today.

We are all dealing with some form of “supply chain issues” in our lives due to the Covid pandemic. Whether it’s a shortage of building supplies, medical supplies, or large green olives and small seltzer bottles (near and dear to my heart). A search on Google for the phrase “supply chain issues” comes back with 1,420,000,000 search items.

Everywhere we look in the telecom and internet infrastructure space we see preparations for 5G underway.  But in many cases, the technological hurdles aren’t the difficult ones.  In markets like New York City it’s easier to talk about network densification but a whole lot harder to actually do it.  Places like NYC have long been minefields for large carriers, but opportunity zones for smaller companies with the necessary local knowledge and capabilities.  One such operator in NYC is Skywire Networks, which has been busy deploying its network throughout the digital deserts of NYC. With us today to talk about Skywire’s approach to bringing high-speed internet to every corner of NYC is founder and CEO Alan Levy.

Words can’t adequately describe what we all experienced in 2020. In early March and through the spring and summer, NYC was at the epicenter of the Covid-19 crisis.

Early on, a number of our employees (including me) had the virus. Fortunately, we all got through the first wave in good shape. For months, most businesses either moved to remote working or shut down, thereby leaving the city as a ghost town. The sounds of sirens filled the air around our offices in Brooklyn, only interrupted by the loud clanking of the pots and pans at 7PM each night by our citizens thanking our nurses, doctors and first responders.

I recently read a thoroughly researched article titled – “It’s 2020: Why Is The Internet Still Treated Like A Luxury, Not A Utility?” As the CEO of Skywire Networks, not only have I been asking this same question for many years, but I have worked with my team over the past 6 years to build an internet network throughout NYC, especially in the “fiber poor” outer-boroughs of Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx.

Early last month, with much fanfare, Apple announced their new 5G iPhone12. As the Apple ads hit the airwaves, not surprisingly so did the ads for Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T all touting their “5G” networks. If you read the fine print, you will realize that a very small portion of the 5G nationwide network is available and operating. There are 20,000 cities in the US and one of the carriers noted that they have lit 2,000 cities or 10%. If you dig a bit deeper, the total populations of these 2,000 cities is less than 1% of the total population. Anyway, these companies want to sell tons of phones and selling a new shiny object like 5G is a great way to do so.

We were featured in American Security Today regarding our pandemic response.

Skywire Networks, one of NYC’s fastest growing ISP’s, having lit more than 800 buildings and providing data services to thousands of business customers, is excited to announce that it has extended its network to Northern Manhattan and Southern Bronx.

The following article was written by our good friend Skyler Ditchfield, the CEO at California based GeoLinks and we couldn't agree more.  While Skywire Networks provides both Fiber and Fixed Wireless access methods (often both resulting in true diversity), Fixed Wireless is a key component of what we do as owners of one the largest networks in NYC.

Fixed wireless is one of the most reliable, cost-effective connectivity solutions in the marketplace. Despite a proven track record, many misconceptions persist about fixed wireless service. Some of this confusion stems from the early iterations of fixed wireless, some is the product of Internet rumors and some is based on simple misunderstanding of the different types of wireless connections. In reality, today’s fixed wireless solutions can be game changers for business in terms of cost, reliability, redundancy, speed of deployment and scalability.

To set the record straight, we’ve prepared this quick guide to 8 key facts about fixed wireless Internet services.

We hope that everyone is safe and healthy during the Covid-19 pandemic.

As an essential service provider and one of the most active network builders in NYC, we have stayed busy during the crisis. We are proud to announce that we have recently lit our 800th building.

We hope that you and your families are safe and healthy during this pandemic.

NYC is at the center of this crisis and our team is on the front lines in deploying critical infrastructure to city, state and federal agencies.

Dear Skywire customers and partners,

At this time when the news is dominated by Coronavirus, I wanted to personally reach out and let you know that we are vigilantly implementing enhanced protocols and increasing network capacity, redundancy, and security to ensure that your network and business continues to run seamlessly and without interruption. 
We are closely monitoring the guidance of the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control regarding the spread of the virus, which among other things has resulted in the implementation of unprecedented levels of remote workforce policies. Demand for broadband services continues to rise especially as video conferencing, virtual-events tools, conference calling and other UC tools, are relied on to insure seamless communication with your employees, customers and partners.  
Here’s what we’re doing:

NEW YORK, Oct. 4, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Velstar International LLC, a global technology solutions provider, announced today the deployment of a high-quality, fully redundant, dual-path Internet network into 555 West 25th Street in New York City. Owned by MacTaggart Family & Partners (MFP LP), this PLATINUM Certified building is a stately, six-story, pre-war loft building in the heart of the West Chelsea Art District and a few blocks from Hudson Yards. It offers tenants a broad range of technology amenities in partnership with Skywire Networks, one of the fastest-growing Internet builders in NYC. MFP LP has made a significant investment in the building's elevator system, common-area upgrades, surveillance and access security, as well as fiber-based, high-speed Internet, data and voice services.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 13, 2019

In 2004, an article was published by a research thinktank called The Center For an Urban Future titled - New York’s Broadband Gap. It’s remarkable how little has been accomplished in the 15 years since the article was published. Sometimes you need to look into the past to see the future.

It’s nice to see Starry, a Boston based fixed wireless company focused primarily on the urban MDU space, raise $120 million at a pre-money valuation of $875 million. 

For $50/month, Starry delivers 200MB speeds to residential customers living in apartment buildings initially in Boston and in other cities. Starry, Skywire and other platforms which deliver OTT services are contributing to the massive increase in “cord cutting” which increased to 1 million homes in the fourth quarter.  

Awesome day at TBI's NYC Cloud Commission event! Thanks @TBI Team!

"Intelisys has aligned with a major Ethernet provider to serve New York City.  The ScanSource-owned master agent/distributor is partnering with Skywire Networks, which has 525 lit buildings in the Big Apple. Intelisys subagents can now offer services on Skywire’s broadband network...The new supplier gives needed resources to partners facing portfolio gaps when it comes to serving New York City area customers.  Skywire prides itself on reaching “digital deserts,” which are offices that aren’t part of well-lit “class A” commercial buildings."

New York, NY –– Skywire Networks, one of the fastest growing Ethernet providers in New York City, with more than 525 lit buildings, 35 distribution hubs and 39,000 near-net buildings, announced today that it is now a Supplier Partner with Intelisys, Inc., a ScanSource company, and the nation’s leading provider of technology services. This partnership will provide Intelisys Sales Partners with access to Skywire’s extensive NYC broadband network.    

New York, NY –– Skywire Networks, one of the fastest growing Ethernet providers in New York City, with more than 525 lit buildings, 35 distribution hubs and 39,000 near-net buildings, announced today their partnership with white-glove master agent TBI. TBI, one of the nation’s leading third-party technology distributors, will now offer their customers and agents access to Skywire’s extensive NYC broadband network.

Skywire Networks is excited to announce significant enhancements to our Partners Portal in Q1 2019. 

Since the portal’s launch in June 2018, we have added thousands of more qualified buildings, lowered retail and wholesale prices and also built out the Portal’s Resource Center which debuted in October 2018 to include new partner sales resources including commission reporting.

Spectrum is so bad that even their employees are urging customers to leave.  

Over the past ten years, the carrier and channel community has been selling Ethernet over Copper (EOC) as a higher bandwidth solution often used to replace T-1's. Carriers and Channel Partners in NYC (and elsewhere) that rely on EOC provided by Verizon are learning that the copper infrastructure is being retired and these circuits are at risk. This is already becoming a MAJOR problem for those carriers and channel partners that sell EOC services. 

NEW YORK--Skywire Networks, one of the fastest growing Ethernet providers in New York City, announced today that it has launched an online resource center for agents, channel partners and wholesale carrier partners. Skywire recently announced the lighting of its 500th building in NYC. In addition to lighting 500 buildings, Skywire has also built 35 major distribution hubs throughout NYC, resulting in a near-net coverage area of 39,000+ commercial buildings.

Alan Levy, co-founder & CEO of Skywire Networks, one of the largest Fixed Wireless Broadband Providers in New York City discusses what to expect as net neutrality fades into the distance.

Not only has the internet become a vital part of our lives, it’s also become an integral part of the economy. Think about how much investment and innovation is driven by companies in Silicon Valley, all of whom rely on the internet in some way, shape, or form. For those companies who reap billions of dollars in revenue every year, having access to high-speed internet is something they don’t really think about because they have the money to pay whatever fees companies like Verizon or Comcast are charging them. They also have the wherewithal to build their own infrastructure, which means they care less about the general state of internet connectivity.

The internet has taken over our lives. Whether that will turn out to be beneficial or harmful (or a combination of both) remains to be seen, but the fact of the matter is that it’s near impossible to conduct any aspect of everyday life without using the internet in some way. We communicate using the internet. We pay our bills over the internet. We consume news and entertainment on the internet. Many of us require the internet to do our jobs. The internet has become woven into the fabric of everyday life, but it has become so commonplace as to seem invisible. We turn on our computers with the assumption that we will be able to access everything we need, without a thought to the infrastructure that allows that to happen. In doing so, we ignore the role that the internet - and access to it - plays in shaping the landscapes around us, particularly with regard to determining the future urban landscape and the cities of tomorrow.

For a long time, people looking for an alternative to fiber providers such as Verizon and Time Warner Cable had nowhere to turn to. As Daryl Schoolar, a principal analyst at OVUM, a market research and consulting firm, has noted, “For more than a decade, there has been great interest in operators using fixed wireless access, or microwave, as a viable ‘last-mile’ technology”, despite the fact that such technology was at the time unstable under certain conditions. But providers persevered, and fixed wireless access (also known as FWA) has become an increasingly popular option in both densely populated cities such as New York and rural areas in places like Oklahoma and Iowa.

Alan Levy, co-founder & CEO of Skywire Networks, one of the largest Fixed Wireless Broadband Providers in New York City discusses why content is king, but not with access via the "last mile".

See the original article as seen on Forbes here.

The repeal of net neutrality was not a popular decision - at least, not among the internet users of the United States, of which there are many. So why, then, was net neutrality repealed? The answer, according to FCC chairman Ajit Pai, is because the rules set out during the tenure of the previous FCC chairman Tom Wheeler were too “heavy-handed,” and worked to penalize telecoms companies at the expense of growth and innovation - in other words, because it wasn’t favorable for ISPs.

Alan Levy, CEO and co-founder of Skywire Networks, discusses who owns the customer with Forbes.

There is a growing appeal for fixed wireless access (FWA) as an alternative to fiber-class access methods, especially for enterprise-class services. FWA can compete directly against other technologies, like fiber, in its ability to transport Ethernet & support high-speed broadband Internet access. 

Check out our white paper as featured on Fierce Telecom.

Ascend Learning Featured Use Case Demonstrates Fixed Wireless Can Compete Directly Against other High-speed Connectivity Options including Fiber.

Alan Levy, CEO and Co-Founder Skywire Networks, describes the technology and speed with which they can light up buildings to Don Witt of The Channel Daily News, a TR publication.

Alan Levy, co-founder & CEO of Skywire Networks, one of the largest Fixed Wireless Broadband Providers in New York City discusses why it's important to futureproof your internet connectivity.

Alan Levy, CEO and Founder, Skywire Networks made the point that private industry has already spent a ton of time and money working on 5G, and it would be a total waste to have the government start over.

"...Also in NYC, Skywire has significantly scaled its wholesale and channel activities. They've put some of the capital they raised recently to work lighting buildings in the rest of the city outside of midtown and downtown. And they have now unveiled a Partners Portal to provide better access to connectivity and pricing for lit and near-net buildings."

New York, New York – January 25, 2018 – Skywire Networks, one of the most active and fastest growing Ethernet providers in New York City, announced today that it has significantly scaled its wholesale and channel partner activities. Subsequent to a significant capital raise completed last summer, the company has now hit a new milestone – it has lit its 450th building and has now published its own near-net footprint of 20,000+ commercial buildings.


"We are incredibly excited to announce our plans to accelerate our wholesale and channel activities. Unlike most fiber providers that have focused exclusively on midtown and downtown Manhattan Class A commercial buildings, our NYC coverage area covers most of Brooklyn, Queens and those parts of Manhattan which have poor fiber density,” says Alan Levy, CEO of Skywire Networks.


Levy goes on to say, “With continued consolidation in the telecom space, there is a shortage of quality carriers that can provide wholesale SLA Ethernet private line access to buildings and businesses throughout NYC. Skywire is excited to help our partners fill this void in the marketplace.”


Skywire sells both wholesale Ethernet private lines to other carriers as well as Skywire-branded voice and data services to channel partners and agents. A key component of this effort will be the launch of our Partners Portal (https://www.skywirenetworks.com/partners). Registered users will be able to search for a NYC building by entering the service address and will immediately determine if Skywire can provide high-speed connectivity and the associated monthly recurring charges.


Skywire’s NYC portal includes Skywire lit buildings (Type 1), Skywire partner fiber buildings (Type 2), and Skywire near-net buildings. Today, the few carriers that do publish a pricing portal only include their own on-net buildings. Skywire’s portal is differentiated as an industry capable tool, in that Skywire publishes a building list of more than 60,000 NYC commercial buildings which covers essentially all of NYC.


Metro-Connect


On January 29th through January 31st, the Skywire Team will be attending the Metro Connect conference in Miami, Florida.
If you’d like to learn more about Skywire Networks and our extensive capabilities, connect with us in room 147 and hear us speak at the event:
Session Title: Understanding How to Cater to the Enterprise
Speaker: Darren Feder, President, Skywire Networks
Date: January 29, 2018
Time: 4:20 p.m. ET




# # #

Skywire Networks' very own Alan Levy discusses why the FCC has lowered broadband standards with Telecom Ramblings.

New York City is a city of skyscrapers, high-rises and water towers perched far above the ground. But so much of what connects our city -- the subway system, water and electric utilities, fiber and so on -- lies beneath the ground. In an old, densely built city like New York, instead of perpetually looking to dig up of streets to deliver essential services to NYC businesses, we should be looking to solutions that allow for minimal disruption while providing the highest quality service.

Two Providers Promise Better Cell Service, Innovative Broadband
by Briana Warsing

There is help on the way for Islanders whose phones regularly drop calls in the Westview arcade, the Good Shepherd Church plaza, the bowels of the Cultural Center, and elsewhere. At next Tuesday’s Board meeting for the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC), members will vote on a proposal to increase cellular service on the Island by laying down fiber lines to new, small cell towers attached to lamp posts along Main Street.

The goal is higher capacity and better in-building coverage. Crown Castle has worked with RIOC to determine the Island’s dead spots. Together, they identified specific locations to install new small cell solutions networks based on a careful and thorough review of existing poles and neighborhood sites.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the Island, Cornell Tech is getting a boost of a different sort. When looking for a way to bring high-speed internet access to its high-demand campus, the school made the surprising choice to not lay down fiber. Instead, they looked to the sky.

In a nod to the school’s innovative architecture, focus on sustainability, and investment in New York’s tech industry, Cornell Tech relies on Skywire Networks, a company that connects commercial buildings to their network via microwave radios which are installed on the roofs of tall buildings. Skywire CEO and co-founder, Alan Levy, has spent the last five years building the company to deliver high-quality, high-speed internet to buildings traditionally underserved by cable and copper-based carriers.

Fiber

“Fiber is a terrestrial network. It’s in the street,” says Levy, “You have to dig up the roads in order to install it.” According to Levy, most of the fiber in New York City was installed in midtown and in the financial district because those businesses are the ones that could afford it. But in other parts of the city, Levy says, there’s much less fiber installation (less than 5 percent according to his research), which means businesses and buildings have to rely on an old copper technology, and, in many instances, cable technology, for broadband. “That’s the problem we are solving via Skywire.”

Skywire Networks delivers high-speed internet through the air.

In the scheme of fiber haves and have-nots, Roosevelt Island is a have-not. “During construction, many times they will coordinate fiber, and all the conduits inside the building will be built for that,” he says. “Part of it, obviously, has to do with it being on an Island. It’s expensive to dig under the water and lay fiber, particularly for the size of Roosevelt Island. Most times, when fiber is used to deliver high speed broadband, you dig up the street from point A to point B.”

Skywire Networks, he says, can deliver the same speed that fiber delivers. The difference is that their equipment sits on the roof that goes into the building, versus fiber that goes into the basement that goes into the building; it’s just a different path to get into that building.

Skywire’s technology connects to the building, the signal comes through the sky through point-to-point radio equipment. In Cornell Tech’s case, it connects the buildings at Cornell Tech to the Skywire network in Long Island City, where there is fiber. The strategy, says Levy, is to deploy fiber, and then that last mile or so use the microwave radios to deliver the same type of speeds that fiber gets.

Levy says that his company’s installation at Cornell Tech will not impact the rest of the Island, but that he would be happy to work with RIOC in order to connect the rest of us. He is aware that there isn’t great service here. “To the extent there are other needs outside of Cornell Tech, we can address those with the building owners themselves because we can connect to Roosevelt Island.”

Cell Service

For those who spend most of their time on a mobile phone, the Board is expected to vote December 19 on a plan to connect us with new cell towers being installed around Main Street.

In a presentation given at RIOC’s Real Estate Development Advisory Committee meeting on November 9, Joseph Klem and Esme Lombard from wireless infrastructure provider Crown Castle proposed building and maintaining a fiber ring around Roosevelt Island to supply the Island with reliable cellular connectivity. Part of their plan requires them to provide four strands of dark fiber around the Island.

They will then install additional small cell towers in weak-signal or high-data-traffic areas around the Island. Crown Castle is a neutral cell host system, and is designed to host all carriers; “every carrier has a chance to come in,” said Klem.

The good news is that, unlike the Con Edison work that was recently done on the Island, Klem says this work would take only three to six months, and that it can go right on the edge of the curbline.

Skywire Networks' very own Alan Levy shares his thoughts on the future of net neutrality with Telecom Ramblings.

Alan Levy, CEO at Skywire Networks, shares one of his greatest tips for entrepreneurial success with Inc Magazine.

"Serial entrepreneur Alan Levy has quite a track record in the tech industry. Prior to Skywire Networks, in the '00s, Levy created BlogTalkRadio, a digital podcasting platform, and served as its Chairman and CEO. Levy was also President of Destia Communications, a global telecommunications firm was sold to Viatel for over $1 Billion.

After realizing a successful exit selling Destia Communications, Levy took a few years off to get reacquainted with his family and get his financial plan together, and gradually began about what he wanted to do next. While Levy did achieve monetary success as a first-time entrepreneur, he soon realized that he loved so many other things about being an entrepreneur.

He loved the idea of building teams of people with completely different but complementary skill sets. Levy also loved the idea of competing against enormous, non-innovative, dominant telecommunication companies. He loved the excitement, the passion, the hard work, and the idea of that only a thin line exists between becoming great success or a great failure.

Success isn't always measured monetarily. "It's the non-monetary reasons," Levy says, "that keep the fire going.""

I had the pleasure to interview Alan Levy. Alan is the CEO of Skywire Networks, one of the largest fixed wireless broadband networks in New York City, with more than 400 lit buildings, more than 30 hubs and a near-net footprint of 25,000 commercial buildings. Skywire Networks partners with commercial building owners throughout New York City and especially the buildings located outside midtown and downtown Manhattan. The cost of digging up the streets and laying fiber in New York City is impractical and largely uneconomical. Prior to Skywire, Alan was Chairman and CEO of BlogTalkRadio, a NYC based digital podcasting platform. Prior to creating BlogTalkRadio in 2006, Alan was President of Destia Communications, a global telecommunications business which was sold to Viatel in December 1999 for more than $1 Billion.

PETALUMA, Calif., Nov. 15, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Calix, Inc. (NYSE:CALX) today announced it has accelerated past the 100 service provider deployment milestone for its industry-leading AXOS Gfast solutions faster than any other vendor. Armed with Calix AXOS Gfast solutions, which simplify the delivery of new services, service providers globally are cost-effectively upgrading their offerings to a true symmetrical gigabit experience in challenging multi-dwelling unit (MDU) environments. By leveraging the Calix Gfast portfolio, the copper and coaxial cable infrastructure in many MDUs is no longer an obstacle to deployment, allowing service providers to offer a unified gigabit marketing message across their markets, and reap the benefits of AXOS, the world’s only Software Defined Access (SDA) platform, to deliver Always On services to all subscribers in record time.

 Alan Levy , Forbes Councils

Take a look at any ad for a cellphone service provider, and you’ll see that the overwhelming emphasis is always on speed and, more specifically, on the fact that its competitor doesn’t offer the speed you need to do whatever it is you need to do. And yet, when it comes to business broadband, so many people are willing to stick with what they have, either because they are unaware of other options or because their buildings lack the infrastructure to do so. For high-speed broadband in commercial buildings in New York City, for example, there’s a stark difference between the haves and have-nots, especially in Brooklyn, the Bronx and Queens, as well as most areas in Manhattan outside of midtown and downtown. It seems incredibly ironic that NYC, one of the largest and wealthiest cities in the world, has such a weak broadband footprint for a large urban city.

Businesses today are 100 percent dependent on their internet connection for everything from internal communications, client correspondence, paying vendors, and in some cases, getting paid for their work in a timely fashion.

Irritating coworkers and your office internet service have more in common than you think. In a survey conducted by Samsung last year, 1,000 office workers were asked what their biggest office annoyances were. Noisy and messy eating, uncomfortable seats and office temperatures and complaining all made the list of top annoyances, but a whopping 92% of people said that slow internet speeds and other technical difficulties were the most frustrating thing to deal with in an office environment.

We were mentioned today on Axios Pro Rata!

"Skywire Networks, a New York-based fixed wireless business broadband provider, has raised $23 million in new funding from Metropolitan Partners Group."

You can see the original source by clicking on the link below:

Yesterday the New York attorney general filed a lawsuit against Charter Communications, alleging that the cable internet provider failed to deliver on promised internet speeds and reliability. Connecticut-based Charter’s subsidiary, Spectrum, was previously known as Time Warner Cable.

We are pleased to announce that as a proud sponsor of the Long Island City Partnership, Skywire Networks will be exhibiting at their marquee event of the year – the LICP Annual Trade Show and Luncheon -- on November 10^th at the Astoria World Manor! This B2B trade show in Western Queens will feature more than 100 exhibitors, local tastemakers, and thousands of attendees.

Google rocked the telecommunications world this week with its announcement that its Google Fiber division is halting its planned rollout in 10 cities and that its chief executive, Craig Barratt, is stepping down. Layoffs are planned.

In New York City’s boroughs you are guaranteed access to the world’s best bagels, pizza and cheesecake 24 hours a day. But high-speed broadband? Not necessarily. 

When the Vanbarton Group, a privately owned real estate investment and advisory firm, purchased the Zipper Building in Long Island City, Queens in February of 2015, they had big plans for the 51,200 square foot building. But they knew a key part of transforming the former storage facility into a state-of-the-art commercial space was bringing business-class broadband into the building for Vanbarton’s future tenants.

There was big news in the ISP industry earlier this summer when it was announced that Google Fiber had entered into an agreement to acquire Webpass, an internet service provider that uses point-to-point wireless technology to deliver high-speed broadband to apartment buildings and businesses. With tens of thousands of customers across five major markets in the U.S. (the San Francisco Bay Area, San Diego, Miami, Chicago and Boston), Webpass will allow Google Fiber to accelerate the deployment of superfast internet connections for customers in urban areas across the U.S.

XCHANGE TELECOM LIGHTS ITS 250TH BUILDING IN NEW YORK CITY 

LAUNCHES NEW DIVISION -- SKYWIRE NETWORKS -- TO BRING ETHERNET ACCESS TO THE CITY’S NON-FIBER COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK – July 28, 2016 -- Xchange Telecom, a diversified, New York City-based telecommunications company, announced today that it has just lit its 250th building, The Zipper Building at Austell Place in Long Island City, Queens. This is a major milestone in the company’s mission of bringing ethernet access to NYC’s underserved areas. The Brooklyn-based company also announces the launch of Skywire Networks, the business division of Xchange Telecom. Currently, more than 90% of commercial buildings in Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan do not have access to gigabit speeds and are reliant on poor quality connections and services solely from Verizon and the cable companies. 

Slow Internet was Crippling Attitude Inc. as Uploading Large Video Files Became Industry Standard 

Brooklyn, NY, April 27, 2016 - Strikes are disruptive. That's exactly the point of them. It has now been more than a week since 40,000 Communications Workers of America (CWA) union members went on strike against Verizon. Experts say the strike, which is the largest national strike in years, could go on for weeks and backlogs will likely impact the organization for months.

Wiring the Internet Deserts of New York

This article can be viewed by clicking here.

Broadband deployments: Government gets busy

This article can be viewed by clicking here.

NYCEDC teams up with ISPs to bring faster internet to Brooklyn businesses

This article can be viewed by clicking here.

NYCEDC Announces the Launch of Connect IBZ: Broadband Expansion in Industrial Business Zones New Broadband Networks Will Improve Access to High-Speed Internet in IBZs in Brooklyn and Queens, Helping to Facilitate Connections for Hundreds of Businesses in Underserved Digital Deserts

NYCEDC Announces the Launch of Connect IBZ: Broadband Expansion in Industrial Business Zones

New Broadband Networks Will Improve Access to High-Speed Internet in IBZs in Brooklyn and Queens, Helping to Facilitate Connections for Hundreds of Businesses in Underserved Digital Deserts

New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) today announced the launch of Connect IBZ: Broadband Expansion in Industrial Business Zones (Connect IBZ), a $5.3 million public-private partnership that will construct access to high-speed Internet in IBZs in New York City by expanding broadband infrastructure in currently underserved areas. The program will create high-speed commercial broadband networks in the Southwest Brooklyn, Long Island City, North Brooklyn, and Greenpoint-Williamsburg IBZs, which are among the City’s “Digital Deserts.” Fast and reliable broadband access has become increasingly critical for businesses of all types in New York City, and Connect IBZ will help increase access to broadband connectivity for hundreds of businesses in these currently underserved communities. The networks in the four IBZs will be designed, constructed, maintained, and operated by Stealth Communications Services LLC, and Xchange Telecom LLC, two New York City-based Internet Service Providers (ISPs).

"High-speed Internet is critical to the success of businesses in the 21st century economy, and it is imperative that we support these Industrial Business Zones with the necessary infrastructure so that they can continue to provide quality jobs for New Yorkers," said NYCEDC Interim President Kim Vaccari. "Connect IBZ provides broadband access to underserved industrial businesses in Brooklyn and Queens, bringing increased opportunities to hundreds of businesses in former Digital Deserts."

Through the Connect IBZ program, Stealth Communications will build a fiber optic network in the Southwest Brooklyn IBZ, and will work with NYCEDC and members of the community to determine a site for an outdoor wireless network that will be free to the public. Xchange Telecom will create a fiber core, fixed-wireless edge broadband network in the Long Island City, North Brooklyn, and Greenpoint-Williamsburg IBZs, enabling customers to receive service from network hubs wirelessly via rooftop-mounted equipment. Customers signing up for service from either provider will have access to service at speeds from 10 megabits per second to one gigabit per second or higher. Both ISPs will work closely with community organizations in the IBZs to ensure that the network design and business outreach processes are informed by local priorities and provide local benefits. Kickoff events will be held this summer in each of the IBZs, where commercial tenants will be able to learn more about the program and sign up for service. Businesses interested in the IBZs interested in upgraded broadband service may visit http://nycedc.com/connectibz to learn more about these events and submit their information to be put in touch with the ISPs as service rolls out in their area.

NYCEDC will provide over $1.6 million for the program from the New York State Connect NY Broadband Grant Program. This funding will be supplemented by private contributions from the ISPs totaling over $3.75M. Project funding will cover the costs of network creation as well as build-outs to at least 500 commercial tenants over two years, with both ISPs investing in further network expansion beyond the contract term. Commercial tenants in the IBZs will benefit from access to newer and more reliable technologies as well as faster Internet speeds that will enable them to grow and thrive. This initial investment in broadband infrastructure in these digital deserts will serve as a launching pad for future growth and will ensure that these areas remain competitive with other real estate in the city for attracting and retaining innovative businesses.

The Connect IBZ project areas were selected through a publicly-issued Request for Expressions of Interest, and the providers were selected through a public Request for Proposals issued in summer 2014. “Access to high-speed broadband is critical for growing and retaining business in New York State. Without robust broadband infrastructure, businesses cannot remain competitive in today’s 21st century global economy,” said David Salway, Executive Director of the NYS Broadband Program. “We are extremely pleased that through Governor Cuomo’s Connect NY Broadband Grant Program, unserved businesses in the NYC region will benefit from these key infrastructure improvements.”

"For 20 years Stealth’s mission has been serving New York City businesses with ultrafast Internet connectivity," said Shrihari Pandit, Managing Member of Stealth Communications. "We are honored to receive support from the City and State — the grant speeds our expansion into Brooklyn and brings down broadband costs for businesses throughout the IBZ."

“Xchange Telecom is honored to be a key part of the NYCEDC Connect IBZ project. Xchange will deliver business class broadband services as well as state of the art Communications services to the rapidly growing and thriving business community located throughout the Connect IBZ footprint”, says Alfred West, CEO of Xchange Telecom.

“We consistently hear from our businesses in the IBZs, particularly those in smaller, older buildings, that access to high speed, reliable, affordable broadband is essential to their future success,” Elizabeth Lusskin, President of the Long Island City Partnership. “This is true whether you are operating a more traditional industrial company that uses tech on your sales and administrative side, or one of our many companies where tech forms the core of the business. Increasing broadband on an area-wide basis will also help LIC maintain a competitive edge over areas outside the city that seek to lure our companies away.”

“We’re so glad Connect IBZ is getting off the ground”, stated Leah Archibald, Executive Director of Evergreen. “So many businesses complain about spotty telephone and internet service in North Brooklyn. This program will provide relief for these businesses, helping them respond to their customers’ needs in a timely fashion”.

“The Southwest Brooklyn Industrial Development Corporation (SBIDC) is thrilled that the businesses of Southwest Brooklyn will soon benefit from widespread and reliable broadband internet access,” said David Meade, Executive Director of SBIDC. “For years now throughout Sunset Park, short and sometimes long term internet outages are very common. We hear from businesses all the time of the challenges in conducting business day in and day out because of faulty and inconsistent internet service. With all the challenges of running a small business, an improved and fast internet service will help the myriad of businesses not only with everyday operations but also add to their ability to expand their business.”

Connect IBZ is part of City's larger suite of initiatives to expand broadband connectivity and increase high-speed Internet access for commercial businesses and entrepreneurs, including WiredNYC, an initiative aimed at bringing transparency to broadband connectivity in NYC's commercial buildings and the NYC Broadband Map, which provides an up-to-date view of the availability of broadband infrastructure in commercial buildings as well as a view of emerging demand for broadband services in the City’s commercial buildings and neighborhoods. Additionally, the City remains committed to the expansion of broadband and high-speed Internet access throughout all five boroughs. In November 2014, Mayor de Blasio announced LinkNYC, an initiative that will bring the world’s fastest municipal Wi-Fi to millions of New Yorkers by replacing an aging network of public pay telephones with state-of-the-art connection points. About NYCEDC New York City Economic Development Corporation is the City's primary vehicle for promoting economic growth in each of the five boroughs. NYCEDC's mission is to stimulate growth through expansion and redevelopment programs that encourage investment, generate prosperity and strengthen the City's competitive position. NYCEDC serves as an advocate to the business community by building relationships with companies that allow them to take advantage of New York City's many opportunities. Find us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter, or visit our blog to learn more about NYCEDC projects and initiatives. About Stealth Based in New York City, Stealth Communications provides ultrafast Internet connectivity to businesses since 1995. In 2013, the company received authorization from the City of New York to start construction of its own fiber network. Laying every single cable and servicing each customer personally, Stealth offers some of the City’s fastest and most reliable Internet service at a nominal cost, providing a platform for New York’s businesses and entrepreneurs to thrive. Visit www.stealth.net or call Stealth at +1-212-232-2020 to learn more about their Internet and dark fiber services.

About Xchange Xchange Telecom is a NYC based voice and data service provider serving the greater NY area. Xchange Telecom, which was founded in 2002, builds and operates customized network, Ethernet and voice solutions for business, enterprise and carrier customers. Xchange Telecom is committed to the highest level of customer service and support. For more information on the company services, please visit www.xchangetele.com. For more information on the Xchange Connect IBZ project, please visit www.xchangetele.com/NYCIBZ.

Click here for more information about Connect IBZ By NYCEDC.

City will bring high-speed broadband to digital deserts in Brooklyn and Queens

'Digital deserts' of Brooklyn, Queens to get broadband boost

More than 1,200 businesses of varying sizes throughout the borough took part in the Queens Chamber of Commerce’s Queens Business Expo and Breakfast at Citi Field last week....Panelists included Alan Levy, chairman and co-founder of Xchange Telecom, a telecommunications company;

Rachel Haot, chief digital officer and deputy secretary for technology for New York State as part of Gov. Cuomo’s executive chamber; Erik Grimmelmann, president and CEO of the New York Technology Council; and Cyna Alderman, managing director of the Daily News Innovation Lab, an initiative that seeks to engage with the city’s startup community.

Levy, who attended PS 209 in Whitestone and grew up with Friedman, said his company, Xchange Telecom, is working on a broadband network in Queens and Brooklyn to bring internet to areas that desperately need it.

"Queens is like a digital desert ... a lot of businesses are struggling with getting good broadband connectivity and we’re solving these problems" Levy said.

Read more at TimesLedger.com

New Broadband Network Will Improve Access to Business Class Broadband Throughout Multiple IBZs and Business Districts in Brooklyn and Queens, Helping to Facilitate Connections for Hundreds of Businesses in Underserved Digital Deserts

Xchange Telecom LLC (Xchange) today announced the launch of its next phase in its Business Class Broadband expansion in Brooklyn and Queens. Focusing on areas that currently are "digital deserts" without any competitive access to Business Class Broadband, the network expansion will provide services in the Long Island City, Williamsburg, North Brooklyn, and Greenpoint areas. Fast and reliable broadband access has become increasingly critical for businesses of all types in New York City, and this network expansion will help to bridge the "Digital Divide" by increasing access to broadband connectivity for hundreds of businesses in these currently underserved communities.

Xchange Telecom is creating a fiber core, fixed-wireless edge broadband network in the Long Island City, Williamsburg, North Brooklyn, and Greenpoint areas, enabling customers to receive service from network hubs wirelessly via rooftop-mounted equipment. Customers signing up for service from Xchange will have access to Business Class Broadband service at speeds from 20Mbps to one gigabit per second (1 Gbps) or higher. Customers will also be offered an array of telecommunication services including hosted VOIP telephony applications, and a variety of data services. Kickoff events will be held this summer in each of the IBZ’s , where commercial tenants will be able to learn more about the program and sign up for services. Businesses interested in upgraded broadband service may visit http://www.xchangetele.com/NYCIBZ to learn more about these events and submit their information to be put in touch with Xchange as service rolls out in their area.

Xchange Telecom is proud to announce this network expansion. Xchange will deliver business class broadband services as well as state of the art Communications services to the rapidly growing and thriving business community located throughout Long Island City, North Brooklyn and Williamsburg", says Alfred West, CEO of Xchange Telecom. "Brooklyn and Queens, each with more than 2.2 million residents, will finally have a broadband alternative to Verizon and cable. We look forward to working with thousands of businesses, both large and small, that need more powerful and reliable internet connectivity", says Alan Levy, Chairman of Xchange Telecom. This network expansion is part of Xchange's larger goal to increase affordable Business Class Broadband availability throughout NYC. Xchange continues to work with public/private partnerships to increase broadband availability and awareness, including WiredNYC, an initiative aimed at bringing transparency to broadband connectivity in NYC's commercial buildings and the NYC Broadband Map, which provides an up-to-date view of the availability of broadband infrastructure in commercial buildings as well as a view of emerging demand for broadband services in the City’s commercial buildings and neighborhoods.

About Xchange. Xchange Telecom is a NYC based voice and data service provider serving the greater NY area. Xchange Telecom, which was founded in 2002, builds and operates customized network, Ethernet and voice solutions for business, enterprise and carrier customers. Xchange Telecom is committed to the highest level of customer service and support. For more information on the company services, please visit www.xchangetele.com. For more information on the Xchange SkyWire project, please visit www.xchangetele.com/NYCIBZ.

Xchange Telecom is one of a handful of broadband providers working on the issue from another angle by equipping under-served areas with fixed wireless solutions

It's shocking, but true. Residential customers in downtown Seoul and Moscow enjoy Internet access speeds 100 times greater than residents of the Big Apple in many places. In spite of the city's announcement in 2012 that it would invest $25 million annually to expand fiber optic network technology to businesses, the growth has not been fast enough for some.

High speed fiber optic cable has not been laid in many areas of New York, leaving buildings to depend on antiquated DSL lines or cable lines whose performances decrease as more and more people log on in peak times. With content increasingly rich, these no longer suffice for businesses looking to compete.

Typical is a complaint that I recently heard from a busy pediatrician in Williamsburg. Although his provider promised Internet speeds of 10 meg by 3 meg (download - upload), he finds his Internet line crawling and IP phones not working. This is simply not business-grade Internet.

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Building better wireless. Some 90% of Manhattan offices lack high-speed Internet. These gizmos could change that.

For a city that prides itself on being fast-moving and cutting-edge, New York has remarkably slow Internet connections outside Wall Street and midtown, thanks to the high cost of running fiber-optic cable beneath busy streets.

That bottleneck, however, may be loosening for the thousands of commercial buildings just in Manhattan—about 90% of the 13,000 total—that are not wired with business-class broadband. Advances in a technology known as fixed wireless broadband is helping bring high-speed Internet access to buildings whose owners can't persuade fiber providers to shell out the money to connect them.

"Rather than ripping up the roads, we're lighting the sky, and Building better wireless Some 90% of Manhattan offices lack high-speed Internet. These gizmos could change that.the technology is accelerating rapidly," said Alan Levy, chairman of Xchange Telecom, a Brooklyn-based phone company that expanded into fixed wireless several years ago.

Read more on Crain's

Xchange Telecom, key player in the City's effort to build out the next generation of broadband infrastructure.

NYC Broadband Map Demonstrates Broadband Availability in Nearly 2,000 Buildings Across the City.

New York City Economic Development Corporation today announced the launch of the NYC Broadband Map, an initiative designed to expand connectivity and ensure that the City further establishes its position as a leader in technology in the 21st century. The NYC Broadband Map, first announced by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg in June 2012, is designed to provide an up-to-date view of the availability of broadband infrastructure in the City’s commercial buildings, as well as a view of emerging demand for broadband services in the City’s commercial buildings and neighborhoods.

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Xchange Telecom Corp. Chosen by the FCC for its Broadband Adoption Pilot

Xchange Telecom is proud to announce that it has been chosen by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to participate in the FCC’s new pilot project to advance broadband adoption. As one of only fourteen companies across the United States to be selected, and as the only New York provider to be selected, Xchange will, over the next few months, begin rolling out a discount plan for eligible low income customers that will provide significant savings to their broadband costs. In order to rigorously test how best to use a “Lifeline” discount program to support broadband adoption, the pilot will focus on specific neighborhoods in Brooklyn and gather data and provide analysis on a wide a range of geographic, technological, and programmatic variables. The Pilot Program will run for 18 months, beginning on Feb. 1, 2013. This pilot program will enable New York City low income residents to participate in these broadband pricing discounts well in advance of the rest of the country.

In partnership with Baruch College of the City University of New York, Xchange will test market different Lifeline discount plans in different areas of Brooklyn, in order to provide the FCC with actual results assessing adoption rates. In addition, Xchange, in partnership with CUNY and Older Adults Technology Service (OATS) will also offer digital literacy classes to a select group of participants in the pilot to also help increase broadband adoption rates. Xchange is also working with the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) to provide these Lifeline broadband discounts in a group of NYCHA developments located in Brooklyn.

Xchange is thankful to all of its partners, and the myriad of area elected officials who have helped support its participation in the pilot program, including State Senator Daniel Squadron and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer.

Xchange Telecom, started in 2002, is a regional Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) serving the New York region. As a fully interconnected CLEC with state of the art facilities and interconnects to most major carriers and data providers, we provide the personal attention and customized solutions required by the most discriminating of customers. Our corporate culture and experience allows us to service even the smallest business with a personal relationship while scaling to provide enterprise level telecommunications solutions for the largest corporations.

Thousands of small, medium and enterprise sized business customers throughout the metropolitan area rely on Xchange Telecom's state of the art network for the highest quality, personalized service and exceptional value.

• Cutting edge and secure data facilities, staffed by skilled engineers 24/7/365 with a 99.999% uptime rate
• Data Center which is directly connected to over 20 transport providers, connected to all major telecommunications hubs in the metropolitan area

Xchange’s WiMax Network - Skywire

Over the past 12 months, Xchange has been developing a 4G wireless network in NYC, to provide voice and data solutions, and Xchange is deploying a fixed wireless network called Skywire around Brooklyn, NY. Xchange is in the process of deploying initial base stations on rooftops and has just launched its pilot program.

Simultaneously, Xchange is deploying a point-tomultipoint, business grade network in the Brooklyn area. Xchange’s network will allow business to receive SLAlevel data connections – something many businesses in Brooklyn were not able to get until now due to the lack of infrastructure.

This wireless network is designed to provide fixed wireless voice and data connections to area businesses and residential customers.

Xchange CentralOffice delivers you the power of a PBX over your company's existing high-speed Internet connection. All you need to start using our cutting edge hosted phone system are Polycom business phones sitting on your desk and an Internet connection. The features and phone lines are all built in and ready to go.

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