Daytona Beach fiber company targets Southeast Duval with $43M network expansion (Courtesy of the Jacksonville Business Journal) — A new player connecting the cables that keep commerce and entertainment running throughout Florida is coming to Jacksonville.
Wire 3, a growing fiber-optic internet provider, announced plans to deliver its high-speed network to Jacksonville Wednesday, embarking on a $43 million build slated to reach 42,000 homes.
Fulfilling ambitious expansions across Central and South Florida, and even reaching pockets of the south beyond the sunshine state, Jacksonville was just the right fit for the Wire 3’s next phase of growth, which is set to create hundreds of permanent and temporary jobs, said the company’s top executive.
The Daytona Beach company’s focus will be toward the Southeast areas of Duval, building faster internet connections at a more affordable price, said Wire 3 CEO Jai Ramachandran (pictured above).
“Our intention is fully to reach people who don’t have access to fiber optic networks and internet right now in the city,” Ramachandran told the Business Journal.
Launching the expansion is already driving new jobs to Jacksonville, the CEO said. For construction Wire 3 expects to generate about 100 to 150 temporary jobs.
As it fills its corner of the market, the company expects to create about 50 to 100 permanent jobs, from positions in local sales to installation, Ramachandran said. The company’s focus is set to be on single-family homes to start out, and establishing a reliant base of customers.
“So our number one focus is serving single-family homes in this same neighborhood,” Ramachandran said. “For sure, if there is a new apartment building or new housing development that’s being built. We want to serve those people too, but we don’t depend on it.”
Entering the city comes off the heels of multi-million dollar fundraising campaigns, including private credit financing of $235 million arranged by New York-based Guggenheim Investments last year. Founded in 2021, the company has grown its footprint to large swaths of the Atlantic Coast and Central Florida, from Port St. Lucie to Ocala, and has reached the greater southeastern United States, establishing itself in parts of Georgia and South Carolina.
Amid the capital injections, Wire 3 recently reached new corners of Central Florida, growing into DeLand, Deltona and parts of Lake County.
The move into Jacksonville, however, brings Wire 3 to a city with prominent names in the fiber-optic cable sector such as IQ Fiber.
But competition with other local companies is not the goal in the CEO’s words.
Despite the presence of competitors throughout the broader city, part of Wire 3’s strategy is to zero in on open territory, Ramachandran said.
“So when we look at an area, we look at a couple things. Number one, is there already a fiber-ready competitor in the area, and if there is, we usually try to avoid them,” the CEO said. “And then number two, we just look at population density. Are there enough people there? Can we reach as many people as possible while building our dense fiber network as efficiently as possible?”
Broadening access is inherent to that strategy.
None of Wire 3’s plans have a starting rate above $100 a month, with some starting $30 a month and going up to 10 gigabytes per second, per the CEO.
The company’s attention is not limited to high net-worth areas. In fact, Wire 3’s highest performing markets in Florida are often low-income areas, Ramachandran said.
“So we look at what we provide and say, hey, how can our value proposition really resonate with residents, and how can you prove to those communities that we can be a partner,” Ramachandran said. “Not just someone coming through and building a network, but someone who’s here to stay, and someone who will be a partner in the community, not just providing internet, but being involved in the community.”
Photo courtesy of Wire 3