Simply Bits, a Tucson-based provider of fixed wireless internet and network services, is being acquired by internet services provider Tucows Inc. with plans to widen service offerings across Southern Arizona.
The companies have signed a definitive agreement for Tucows subsidiary, Ting internet, to acquire the homegrown Simply Bits, in a deal expected to close after regulatory approvals in the fourth quarter of this year.
Financial terms of the acquisition by Tucows, which is based in Toronto, were not disclosed.
As part of the deal, Ting will assume all of Simply Bits’ existing infrastructure and customers, adding about 4,500 customers, 1,100 square miles of established fixed wireless network, and a small fiber-to-the-home footprint to Ting’s portfolio.
Ting will retain Simply Bits’ employees, including senior management, with assistance and guidance from Simply Bits’ founding members, Tucows said.
Since its founding in 2004, Simply Bits has grown into a leading independent provider of internet, voice and other broadband solutions in Southern Arizona, including Tucson, Marana, Vail, Oro Valley, Green Valley, Rio Rico, Sahuarita and Douglas.
“By building on Simply Bits’ decadeslong service in Southern Arizona, we will have a platform to introduce Ting to the broader Pima, Pinal, Santa Cruz and Cochise county communities, and the team and resources to enter the market quickly,” said Jill Szuchmacher, chief strategy officer and executive vice-president networks for Ting internet.
Simply Bits partner Bradley Feder said the deal will give customers state-of-the-art internet delivery options and allow the business to expand.
“We are excited to become part of the Tucows and Ting family, and continue to grow the business in both area and employment opportunities,” Feder said.
Ting internet offers service in 13 cities in Virginia, California, Colorado, North Carolina, Idaho and Maryland.
Founded in Flint, Michigan, in 1993, Tucows originally provided freeware and shareware services and later expanded into email and internet domain-name services, becoming one of the world’s biggest registrars of domain names. The company is publicly traded on the Nasdaq.
Ting was launched by Tucows as a mobile phone provider in 2012 and expanded into fiber-optic home internet service with its acquisition of Virginia-based Blue Ridge Networks in 2014. Dish Wireless acquired Ting Mobile last year.
