Electric cooperative consulting pioneer Conexon, the first Elite Consulting Engineering Partner within the Calix Partner Community, enables electric cooperatives to create new businesses by delivering critical fiber broadband service to rural communities.
SAN JOSE, CA – November 5, 2020 – Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX) today announced rural fiber optic network design and construction management leader Conexon as the recipient of the 2020 Innovations Award for “Partner of the Year” at ConneXions 2020. Conexon formally joined the Calix Partner Community as the founding member of the consulting engineering category in August and has since been named the first Elite Consulting Partner. The relationship between the companies dates to 2017, a few years after Conexon was founded. Calix gives its Innovations Awards annually to Calix customers and partners using Calix solutions to deliver the ultimate subscriber experience, build future-proof broadband businesses, and become industry leaders. The “Partner of the Year” award honors excellence among the expanding Calix Partner Community and recognizes partners driving innovations through successful collaborations with Calix customers. Calix and Conexon share more than 40 electric cooperative clients deploying fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) networks across the U.S. and 120 more in varying stages of planning.
Conexon is a leader in the end-to-end solutions—design, build, fund, and support—that enable electric cooperatives to bring affordable, world-class fiber internet to the communities and members they serve.
Just as rural utility providers did nearly a century ago with electricity, these rural cooperatives are stepping up to deliver a critical service that ensures the vitality of the member communities they serve. Currently more than a quarter of the 800-plus electric cooperatives serving rural areas of the U.S. are deploying broadband services. With the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction collectively representing more than $20 billion dollars to be awarded over the next 10 years to fund rural broadband projects, that number is increasing.
“Electric cooperatives are playing a critical role in saving rural America by addressing the digital divide,” said Randy Klindt, partner for Conexon. “Successful execution requires expertise from outside their organizations, in a variety of areas. When we engage with a customer stepping up to serve its community, we know Calix provides the unmatched industry know-how and the best-of-breed solutions it takes to make the broadband business a reality. We are thrilled to be recognized by Calix with this award, and we look forward to more collaborative efforts cemented in our shared vision to get rural communities connected and help more service providers build future-proof FTTH businesses.”
Calix established the Calix Partner Community to bring together organizations that share a vision to help CSPs deliver their broadband services faster, stay competitive, and grow their businesses. The Partner Community includes value added resellers, go-to-market partners, and consulting engineering partners.
“Calix partners are instrumental in delivering market-leading solutions to our customers, and it is our pleasure to recognize Conexon with this award,” said Matt Collins, chief marketing officer at Calix. “The mission of Conexon to bring fiber to rural communities aligns perfectly with our mission to connect everyone and everything. We’re also both committed to working specifically with electric cooperatives, which are among the most forward-thinking service providers in adopting the best available solutions. With the recent RDOF auction, the time is now to push innovation. We look forward to working alongside Conexon to bridge the digital divide and help rural American communities thrive.”
Learn more about the recent ConneXions 2020 virtual event, view a replay of the Opening General Session, and see all of the Innovations Award winners.
About Conexon
Conexon works exclusively with Rural Electric Cooperatives to bring fiber to the home in rural communities. The company is comprised of professionals who have worked in electric cooperatives and the telecommunications industry, and offer decades of individual experience in business planning, building networks, marketing and selling telecommunications. Conexon offers its electric cooperative clients end-to-end broadband deployment and operations support, from a project’s conception all the way through to its long-term sustainability. It works with clients to analyze economic feasibility, secure financing, design the network, manage construction, provide operational support, optimize business performance and determine optimal partnerships. To date, Conexon has assisted nearly 200 electric cooperatives, approximately 50 of which are deploying fiber networks. Its work with clients has resulted in nearly 150,000 connected fiber-to-the-home subscribers across the U.S., and the company has secured more than a quarter of a billion dollars in federal and state grants for its clients.
About Calix
Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX) – Innovative communications service providers rely on Calix platforms to help them master and monetize the complex infrastructure between their subscribers and the cloud. Calix is the leading global provider of the cloud and software platforms, systems, and services required to deliver the unified access network and smart premises of tomorrow. Our platforms and services help our customers build next generation networks by embracing a DevOps operating model, optimize the subscriber experience by leveraging big data analytics and turn the complexity of the smart home and business into new revenue streams.
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