Visionary Broadband has acquired Mountain Broadband with the intention of rolling out gigabit fiber internet across the wireless internet service provider’s coverage area in rural Colorado, north of Nederland and as far south as Sedalia and Castle Rock. The acquisition plus another last year complement years of organic growth for the fiber and fixed wireless provider.
“Acquiring Mountain Broadband aligns perfectly with our vision of bringing high-speed internet to rural areas,” said Brian Worthen, CEO of Visionary. “We are continuing our focus on reliable broadband in remote corners of the region.” The company also plans to expand into areas surrounding the Mountain Broadband footprint in the coming months. Mountain Broadband will officially rebrand as Visionary Broadband in the coming months, but the Mountain Broadband employees will be retained to take advantage of their local expertise.
The Mountain Broadband acquisition is Visionary’s second in less than a year. In March 2024, it announced the acquisition of Aristata Communications, a telco in Chaffee, Fremont, Custer, Huerfano and Lake counties in Colorado. That acquisition provided Aristata access to capital to upgrade aging and outdated infrastructure in order to provide reliable high-speed internet. Previously, in 2023, Visionary and Aristata partnered to submit an application for Capital Projects Fund grant funding.
Visionary was begun in Gillette, Wyo., in 1994 in a basement with five dialup phone lines. Today, it provides fiber and wireless internet connectivity to the rural West in Montana, Wyoming and Colorado. In 2020, in the middle of the pandemic, Visionary escalated its fiber buildout to the home, and at the end of 2024, it expected to pass 53,000 homes. There are plans to pass another 20,000 homes in the next two years.
In 2022, Visionary received a private equity investment from funds affiliated with GTCR LLC, based in Chicago, Ill., for the construction of new fiber networks throughout Wyoming, Colorado and Montana, and for match requirements in upcoming State-led grant programs. In November of that year, Visionary committed $100 million to build fiber internet in 20 communities in those three states.
In 2024, Visionary was awarded more than 25 grants totaling more than $56 million, which included 15 grants that were part of the Connect Wyoming project totaling $26.6 million.
“We also take pride in being a reliable choice for grant-funded broadband networks,” Worthen said. “Our track record for completing projects speaks for itself.”
Western states face challenges as they build out BEAD-funded high-speed internet due to the low population densities. Worthen believes Visionary is well-positioned to make the federal money go further with its hybrid wireless/fiber approach.
