For Valentine’s day I thought I would talk about mergers. There have been a few mergers and acquisitions lately in the local broadband arena – and one award. Here are a few of the stories I’ve seen:

Iowa Telecom to Buy Bishop Communication

Iowa Telecom is set to buy Bishop Communications for $43.9 million. Based in Annandale, Bishop wasn’t a name I knew – but apparently it includes Lakedale Telephone – that name I did know. They serve communities in Central Minnesota. From their web sites, it looks as if Lakedale provides DSL and so does Iowa Telecom so from the broadband score sheet, it looks like a wash.

Nextera Buys Stonebridge Wireless

Baxter-based Nextera has acquired StoneBridge Wireless Inc. and its 60 tower sites across the Twin Cities metro area.

From their web site, it looks as if Nextera provides broadband for voice, video and data. They talk about a FTTH backbone – but I think that might be for new developments only at this point. (Admittedly FTTH backbone doesn’t make much sense to me. I thought the beauty of FTTH was that it included technology to the last mile.)

Again from the web site is looks as if StoneBrdige provides wireless broadband to a wide range of communities around the Twin Cities. According to the article in Minneapolis/St Paul Business Journal, StoneBridge got into some trouble in 2006 when owner Stephen Gowdy pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining more than $1 million in federal loans through the RUS program at the USDA. Gowdy will not be moving on to Nextera.

Qwest Seeks a Wireless Partner

They don’t mention Minnesota specifically, but they are actively looking for a partner in the broadband wireless arena.

Qwest is already reselling Sprint wireless services as an MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator), but Mueller said the company is well aware of the need for broadband wireless service and is looking at possibilities there. 

USI Wireless in Minneapolis Rocks

According to a recent report from Novarum, USI Wireless in Minneapolis, Minnesota offers the highest speeds of any metro WiFi network in the U.S. The network was recently awarded the Digital Cities Wireless Communities Best Practices Award.