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12.20.1999
Great Hill Partners Leads $30 Million Commitment To Edge Connections, Inc.
Boston, Mass. - Great Hill Partners recently led the closing of a $30 million investment commitment to Edge Connections, Inc. Edge Connections is a startup telecommunications company with an innovative strategy to overcome the "bandwidth bottleneck" of the local telecommunications loop. By effectively utilizing DSL technology, Edge will be able to provide high-speed data, voice, and other value added services through competitively priced, bundled offerings. Edge Connections, headquartered in Atlanta, will begin rolling out its services in Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities during the first half of 2000. "Edge's network configuration and the resulting low cost of service allows the Company to offer attractively priced broadband solutions to a segment of the market, i.e., small and medium sized businesses, that currently has limited broadband options. We share management's enthusiasm for this opportunity and support the Company's plans for an aggressive national expansion," said Mark Evans, Principal, Great Hill Partners. Great Hill has committed $26.5 million to Edge Connections.
"We are excited to begin the national rollout of our highly scalable network that overcomes the provisioning problems and distance sensitive limitations experienced by other DSL providers. Our network architecture effectively eliminates the two largest impediments to the widespread deployment of DSL services: local 'loop' qualification and network provisioning. By moving the intelligence of the DSL network closer to the business customer, Edge Connections virtually guarantees the consumer the ability to get Edge (DSL) connected. Edge customers will enjoy the speed, reliability and economy of broadband DSL service, and we can turn them up in a matter of days, not months. By transforming existing building wiring into multi-megabit broadband networks, Edge Connections is redefining the building-centric market, alleviating the two greatest concerns for building owners: riser congestion and space limitations. Partnering with Great Hill is a tremendous first step in launching our company to the forefront of this attractive market opportunity," said Jim McKenna, President and founder of Edge Connections. Mr. McKenna has over 12 years experience with telecommunications, data and Internet organizations, including Electric Lightwave, ICG Telecom Group, MCI and Time Warner Communications.
Great Hill Partners is a Boston-based investment firm that provides equity financing and strategic guidance to companies in the Media, Information, Telecom, and Business Service sectors. The firm currently manages over $700 million in private equity raised from institutional investors including leading commercial and investment banks, state and corporate pension funds, university endowments, and private trusts.
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