Telephone and Data Systems to acquire BendBroadband for $261 million

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc, parent company to TDS Telecom, announced Thursday an agreement to acquire substantially all of the assets of a group of companies operating as BendBroadband, headquartered in Bend for a purchase price of $261 million. BendBroadband generated annual revenues of $70 million in 2013 and has approximately 280 employees. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2014 pending regulatory approvals and other conditions.

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. has agreed to acquire BendBroadband, a broadband and data center provider in Bend, Oregon for $261 million. BendBroadband is a cable provider that offers data center operations, 100Mbps broadband service, and also offered a wireless broadband offering for rural areasthat is now discontinued. It had revenue of $70 million in 2013. Given the spirit of experimentation around rural broadband, and a need for new services, I expect this market to see more deals in the coming year. Last year, TDS purchased Baja Broadband, a regional provider in the Southwestern U.S.