Will Expand Greenlight's High-Speed Fiber Internet to Thousands of WNY Homes
BUFFALO, N.Y., December 17, 2019 – Today, Greenlight Networks, the fastest fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) provider in New York State, announced plans to expand its high-speed internet to the Buffalo Niagara region thanks to an investment from Tom Golisano. Golisano, controlling equity partner in Greenlight Networks, shared that he will invest more than $100 million to fund the fiber optic network expansion for residents and small businesses.
Greenlight’s fiber optic network will deliver data speeds as high as 2 Gbps, with a base speed of 500 Mbps, which is five times faster and 25 percent less expensive than the incumbent cable provider, with no contracts, taxes or hidden fees. Fiber internet provides the best possible online experience for gaming or streaming high-quality video and supports simultaneous high-speed connections across multiple devices. Additionally, a recent study found that homes in neighborhoods with a fiber connection can see an increase in value up to 3.1 percent, or $5,437 (Wall Street Journal).
The investment will also help future-proof communities and foster additional growth and economic development across Upstate New York.
“Our business model is based on customer interest, which is the driving factor for us when determining where to expand our services to,” said Mark Murphy, CEO of Greenlight Networks. “Our research shows a considerable amount of pent-up demand for high-speed broadband in Buffalo and the surrounding areas, so we’re extremely excited to bring the reliability and speed of a world-class internet connection to this market.”
HOW IT WORKS: Buffalo Niagara region residents can visit Greenlight’s dedicated webpage and complete an interest form. Neighborhoods with the highest level of interest will be considered first for construction, pending approvals from municipalities.
Utilizing local Buffalo contractors, Greenlight Networks—under its joint venture with LeChase Construction, a New York based construction management company with 75 years of experience—will begin laying fiber-optic cables across the Buffalo Niagara region starting in the second half of 2020. Further details about specific locations, as well as a formal construction schedule, will be announced this spring.
Greenlight Networks was founded in 2011 in Rochester, N.Y. Tom Golisano acquired a controlling interest in Greenlight Networks in mid-2018. Since then, Greenlight has tripled its staff and brought high-speed fiber internet to more than 40,000 homes in 13 municipalities. Over the past year, Greenlight has invested in people, resources and systems to meet community demand. With this new incremental investment by Tom Golisano, the organization is now positioned to fast-track broad market expansion and anticipates serving 230,000 customers across Western and Upstate New York by the end of 2022.
“There is significant opportunity in Upstate New York, especially here in Buffalo, which is why we believe there is no better time than now to aggressively expand,” Golisano stated. “High speed and reliable fiber networks are important for streaming, gaming and smart homes. But with that speed, consumers expect a reasonable price. Greenlight meets both needs and I expect it will be well received by the residents of Upstate New York.”
Golisano is the founder of Paychex and former owner the Buffalo Sabres. He recently invested in PostProcess Technologies, a 3D printing technology company, and Viridi Parente, which manufactures renewable power systems for heavy machinery and storage applications. Both companies are based in Buffalo. Golisano has also funded the Golisano Center for Community Health at Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center, and the B. Thomas Golisano Center for Integrated Sciences facility at Niagara University.
Several elected and government officials, including New York State Senator, Tim Kennedy; Buffalo Lovejoy District Council Member, Richard A. Fontana; and Buffalo University District Council Member, Rasheed N.C. Wyatt attended a press conference held on Tuesday in support of the initiative.
“With the expansion of Greenlight Networks into Buffalo and Erie County, a Western New York-based business is growing its footprint, bringing both full-time and construction jobs and creating a new source of broadband accessibility for many local businesses and individuals alike,” said New York State Senator, Tim Kennedy. “Our city was built on opportunity, and this new investment by Tom Golisano has the potential not only to be an asset to Buffalo’s economy and workforce, but to the communities that make our city so dynamic.”
“Having a new fiber optic internet provider come to Buffalo which offers higher speeds and lower costs is exactly what our area residents have been requesting for years,” said Buffalo Lovejoy District Council Member, Richard A. Fontana. “We welcome Greenlight and feel the competition in the marketplace will further benefit Buffalo consumers.”
“Our community has been marginalized for far too long with only one internet and cable provider,” said Buffalo University District Council Member, Rasheed N.C. Wyatt. “Greenlight will undoubtedly provide options to residents that will help curb the digital divide and save our community money.”
About Greenlight Networks, LLC: Greenlight Networks is an ultra-high-speed, broadband service provider, offering residential and small business customers Internet speeds up to 2 Gigabit per second. Based in Rochester, NY and founded in 2011, the company builds, owns and operates its fiber-optic networks to provide amazingly fast Internet connections to its customers. For more information on the company, please visit GreenlightNetworks.com or find it on Facebook.com/GreenlightNetworks, and @GreenlightFiber on Twitter.