Google Fiber, now just GFiber, will merge with Stonepeak's Astound Broadband to create a new network provider. Stonepeak will hold a majority ownership stake, while the existing GFiber executive team will run the company. According to the pair, the move gives GFiber the external capital and necessary focus to drive its next phase of expansion, allowing it to buildout its fiber footprint across the US.
The transaction includes only fiber network assets and associated revenues. The ABS includes only the most mature portions of Surf's fiber footprint. ABS provides financing secured by only a portion of a company's total assets. Deals are typically secured with fiber assets and associated revenues. These are considered low-risk revenues, so lenders generally are willing to offer favorable terms for the borrower.
The completed network delivers fiber-to-the-home and fiber-to-the-business Internet service to more than 3,500 addresses in town, providing ultra-reliable service and speeds up to 1 Gbps for homes and 10 Gbps for businesses. ImOn expanded its growing fiber network to Southeast Iowa early last year, working closely with the Mount Pleasant community throughout the project. Construction began in Mount Pleasant in May 2025, and the first customer was connected in July.
Warning that the US's broadband infrastructure is under unprecedented criminal attack by increasing levels of vandalism - leaving critical emergency services offline, hospitals struggling to function, law enforcement and government services disrupted, and communities vulnerable - the US broadband industry has launched the Strategic Threat Response and Infrastructure Knowledge Exchange (Strike) initiative.
