Comcast Business announced today that it had made a major investment to serve up its entire suite of Ethernet, data, voice and video services to 250 businesses in Portsmouth, N.H.
The businesses are located in Pease International Tradeport, which was an Air Force base that has been turned into a business park. While Pease International Tradeport has a 27-hole golf course and convenient location off of Interstate 95, it lacked the telecommunications infrastructure to adequately serve its clients.
“We consider ourselves a state-of-the-art business community, and having the latest communication technologies available not only makes our current tenants happy but also attracts new companies as well,” said Dave Mullen, executive director for the Pease Development Authority. “Our tenants asked for cable connectivity, and now with Comcast on the Tradeport, tenants can choose from a comprehensive list of services that will be able to accommodate nearly any demand. We recognize the large investment Comcast has made to bring these services into the Tradeport, which further reinforces just how committed Comcast is to our local businesses.”
Pease Tradeport attracts approximately 7,800 full- and part-time employees from communities that stretch from Boston to Manchester, N.H. and Portland, Maine. It’s roster of tenants included six restaurants, a bank, a contract U.S. Postal unit, various medical service providers, five institutions of higher learning, and a data backup facility, all of which are verticals that Comcast Business serves.
A spokesman said that Comcast has added over 20 miles of plant to provision the network expansion. Once the project is complete, Comcast will be able to offer data connectivity options with speeds of up to 10 Gbps alongside cloud-based voice and unified communications services.
Tradeport tenants will be able to select a range of options that can accommodate companies with fewer than 10 employees to more than 1,000, and businesses will be served by local sales teams and dedicated 24/7 customer support, headquartered at Comcast’s call center in Manchester, N.H.
“Pease Tradeport is a perfect example of a thriving business community that is succeeding largely because of its willingness to listen – and respond – to the ever-evolving technology needs of its tenants,” said Steve Walsh, Greater Boston region vice president for Comcast Business. “We take our responsibility to the local community very seriously, and that is why we invested the time, effort and capital expense to build out our network so that the needs of every business can be met and so that Pease can continue its role as an engine for local economic growth.”
Comcast first launched its Ethernet services in 2011. In its fourth quarter earnings report earlier this year, Comcast reported that business services revenue increased by 37 percent. On the fourth-quarter conference call, Comcast executives said the company planned to make further strides into the medium-business sector with its Ethernet services.
Comcast will announce its first quarter earnings tomorrow.
