CTI Towers, a wireless tower operating company that is majority owned by Comcast Ventures, has inked a deal to acquire the tower portfolio of Mediacom Communications.
The deal is expected to add more than 360 towers to CTI’s total, extending to 1,000-plus the number of the towers owned or managed by CTI.
Based on the latest count from Wireless Estimator, CTI’s updated grand total would put it well inside the top 10 of the largest U.S. tower companies. Crown Castle (40,039) and American Tower (39,389) lead that list.
RELATED: Comcast-Backed Firm Acquires Vyve Towers
“The Mediacom tower acquisition represents CTI’s largest individual transaction since we were founded in 2011,” Tony Peduto, CTI’s CEO, said in a statement. “CTI has demonstrated it is best positioned to lease tower space to the wireless carriers, while protecting the interests of the cable operators.”
Franklin, Mass.-based CTI Towers said the deal comes as wireless carriers look to get a handle on data demands and add capacity cost-efficiently. Those locations include new tower sites alongside small-cell deployments, the company noted.
“Zoning issues and the timing to get new locations are the biggest challenges carriers face in giving their customers the services they are demanding today, while building the networks to handle the future services such as 5G, including coverage for autonomous vehicles,” Peduto added. “Customers want all the amenities available to them, but few desire a tower built in their neighborhoods to facilitate those amenities,” stated Peduto. “The Mediacom towers are constructed and ready for collocation, and we are pleased to offer an additional group of assets to our customers.”
"Transitioning Mediacom's tower portfolio to CTI will result in a mutually beneficial transaction for both parties," added John Pascarelli, Mediacom's EVP of operations.
