Cincinnati Bell to accelerate Fioptics strategy

Cincinnati Bell on Wednesday announced it will aggressively accelerate fiber installation, which forms the backbone of its Fioptics suite of high-speed Internet, voice and entertainment services for businesses and consumers over the next two years.

CEO Ted Torbeck told investors Cincinnati Bell expects to have 75 percent of the city covered by the end of 2016, and that the company will invest an additional $100 million into fiber in 2015, bringing the total investment for that year to around $200 million.

The company previously said it planned to have 60-70 percent of the region covered with fiber by the end of 2017.

"It's a superior asset," Torbeck said. "We've got a product that delivers."

Fioptics, which is a key part of Cincinnati Bell's wireline growth strategy, is currently available to roughly 38 percent of the market. The company reported in August that Fioptics' revenue hit $34 million in the second quarter, up 45 percent from the previous year.

Torbeck also said the company expects to close the sale of its wireless business to Verizon by Sept. 30, and that its eight stores across the region will sell Verizon handsets.

Cincinnati Bell announced in April it was selling its wireless business, which has seen declining revenues in the face of stiff national competition, to Verizon for approximately $210 million. The company's existing wireless customers, which totaled 276,700 at the end of the second quarter, can continue to use the service until Feb. 28.

Most proceeds from the wireless sale will go toward reducing Cincinnati Bell's $2.2 billion debt. Cincinnati Bell also sold 36 percent of its stake in CyrusOne during the second quarter, generating $356 million to pay down its debt. The company still owns 44 percent of CyrusOne, the data center business it spun off in 2013, which it values at about $700 million.