Windstream Communications says the company will begin gigabit broadband trials starting in December. Speaking to investors during the Wells Fargo Securities Technology, Media & Telecom Conference, Windstream CEO Tony Thomas, said the company will make a more formal announcement shortly, then expand the offering throughout 2016. Windstream lost 30,000 DSL customers in 2015, thanks often to speeds that can't compete with cable.
From the sound of things, the company will primarily be focused on housing developments where fiber already exists.
"In each one of these instances ... we have FTTH, but we have not enabled the 1 Gbps service capabilities," Thomas said. "Being a network-first company where you have done the work of putting fiber in the ground you must get every single dollar you can through monetization."
Most Windstream customers currently struggle to get 1 Mbps thanks to a core network in desperate need of upgrades (as our user reviews will attest). FCC data shows Windstream is one of the worst ISPs in the country at actually delivering advertised speeds. Last year the company also had to pay $600,000 to Georgia's AG for failing to deliver advertised speeds.
And while it's great that
some development homes will get fiber, Windstream still has a lot of work to do everywhere if it doesn't want to continue losing market share to cable.
