Clarity Telecom and corporate parent Pamilico Capital announced this week that they had completed their $262 million cash deal to buy broadband systems and assets, which are located in South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa from WOW!
Clarity said it would transition the platform over from WOW! in the coming months and recast the operation as Vast Broadband. Vast Broadband provides triple play services to more than 50,000 residential and commercial subscribers. The deal was first announced in June of this year.
Pamlico initially partnered with Clarity’s management team in 2003 to build NewWave Communications, which was a rural broadband company that grew to serve 160,000 subscribers. After exiting NewWave through transactions with Time Warner Cable in 2011 and Rural Broadband Investments (2013), Pamlico partnered with Jim Gleason, Keith Davidson, and Larry Eby to create Clarity Telecom, a search company formed to pursue rural broadband opportunities.
Clarity’s team targeted WOW!’s systems in South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa, which WOW! had picked up through its acquisition of Knology in 2012. Some of the systems had been served by PrairieWave Communications, which Knology bought in 2007 for $255 million. PrairieWave also had some operations in Iowa and Minnesota.
“We’re delighted to complete the purchase of the WOW! properties in South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa,” said Gleason, CEO of Clarity. “The growth opportunities considering the local economy, the excellent network and the local staff commitment make this a very exciting acquisition into the broadband communications industry. Our team has evaluated many opportunities in the past year and we’re excited to partner with Pamlico to re-enter the broadband space.”
The deal with WOW! marked the fourth investment in Pamlico Capital III, a fund with $650 million of aggregate commitments. The Clarity management team has operated cable and telecommunications businesses for more than 20 years and is headquartered in Sikeston, Missouri.
“We’re pleased to complete the purchase of the WOW! systems and excited to get to work building Vast Broadband with the Clarity team,” Pamlico Partner Art Roselle said. “We remain very impressed with the quality of the systems we have acquired, and believe that under the management of Jim Gleason and his seasoned team, the systems represent an attractive platform for building a leading broadband business.”
