Boldyn Networks expands its connectivity offering into US Higher Education with agreement to acquire Apogee Telecom
The combination of expertise and experience will provide Higher Education institutions with a full portfolio of wireless and fiber connectivity solutions.
Ensures they keep pace with ever-growing student and administration data demands.
March 6, 2024 | London, England
Boldyn Networks (Boldyn), one of the largest shared network infrastructure providers in the US and globally, has agreed to acquire Apogee Telecom (Apogee), the leading provider of on-campus connectivity infrastructure in the US Higher Education industry. This expands Boldyn’s footprint and capability in the education sector and contributes to the powerhouse’s rapid growth in the US.
Apogee offers wireless residential campus networks for students, faculty, and staff, as well as managed campus network and technology solutions, fiber infrastructure as a service, and video services. It serves more than 350 customers, representing the vast majority of US outsourced on-campus residential infrastructure connectivity.
With students using an average of seven connected devices, plus expanding use of cloud services, AI, AR and VR and gaming, the demand for high speed, low latency connectivity at universities is rapidly growing. This represents a significant growth opportunity as colleges look to provide the highest quality wireless services to their students through outsourcing to a trusted technology partner. As the largest provider of connectivity infrastructure and managed technology services for Higher Education, Apogee facilitates colleges’ and universities’ ability to operate and excel in today’s digital learning environment.
Through this deal Apogee’s customers will have access to Boldyn’s extended wireless capabilities. Boldyn is already investing billions of dollars to improve connectivity across the country. The combination of the two offerings will bring together Boldyn’s full portfolio of small cells, fiber, DAS, macro sites, smart cities, and private networks for larger and scalable wireless infrastructure projects, and the financial backing to support the Higher Education sector’s growth.
“US Higher Education connectivity is very attractive for us as the demand for managed connectivity services continues to grow. It is also an attractive expansion into this vertical for Boldyn that complements well our ambitious growth strategy,” said Igor Leprince, Group CEO of Boldyn Networks. “Apogee comes with a very experienced management team with a strong industry reputation, and endless opportunities to take this model to other regions while offering our full portfolio to customers in Higher Education and helping them to navigate the complex technology evolution and opportunities that come with it. We look forward to working with the Apogee team to accelerate their impressive growth story.”
“Apogee has been on a mission to equip colleges and students with the on-campus connectivity they need to adapt to the transforming and competitive demands of tomorrow’s workforce. We’ve been working exclusively in this sector for the past 25 years, where there is a lot of growth potential,” said Scott Drossos, CEO of Apogee. “We’re confident that the combination of Apogee and Boldyn will continue to meet universities’ evolving connectivity needs for the next 25 years.”
“College students and faculty today have the highest expectations when it comes to always-on, high speed, and low latency wireless connectivity on-campus. Apogee has clearly established itself as the leading provider of connectivity to universities. Boldyn will continue delivering on Apogee’s reputation as the partner of choice for this important set of customers”, said Christos Karmis, Boldyn Networks’ US CEO. “Just as we provide connectivity to the largest cities and venues in the country, we’re now bringing Boldyn’s global expertise and innovation to one the most relevant sectors in the creation of our interconnected future.”
Scott Drossos, CEO of Apogee emphasized: “We are very excited about joining Boldyn. The synergies between our business and Boldyn will open a number of new opportunities to extend our capabilities to existing and new customers in Higher Education, which we have been serving for decades. Joining Boldyn Networks means strengthening our technical and financial ability to deliver innovative, state-of-the-art connectivity to colleges and universities. Apogee has a long history of serving and delighting its higher education customers, and we are pleased that Boldyn shares similar values. Apogee’s customers will continue to enjoy great service and our combined mutual commitment to innovation and customer satisfaction is being strengthened through this agreement.”
With this acquisition, Boldyn Networks in the US reinforces its increasingly critical role in improving people’s lives with enhanced connectivity in top verticals and in the largest cities in the nation.
The transaction is subject to customary regulatory consents. It’s expected to close in the second quarter of 2024.
Boldyn Networks was advised by Bank Street Group and Latham & Watkins. Houlihan Lokey acted as financial advisor to Apogee.
About Apogee Telecom
Established in Austin in 1999, Apogee is a leading provider of managed technology services that enable colleges and universities to innovate, enriching the campus experience and fostering student vitality. Uniquely positioned to serve Higher Education, Apogee supports a community of more than one million students and administrators at over 350 colleges and universities nationwide. The company’s comprehensive portfolio includes Managed Campus (networks, managed IT, cloud, and security services), ResNet (residential networks), campus engagement and digital signage, and video services.