CHICAGO, DES MOINES, Iowa and PHOENIX—July 11, 2006—Sparkplug Inc. (www.sparkpluginc.net) today announced its formation as a result of the merger of three established companies offering wireless business broadband services in the Midwest and Southwestern United States: Sparkplug in Chicago, Prairie iNet in Des Moines, Iowa and Telespectra in Phoenix. The combined entity has operations and networks across eight states, making it among the largest in the emerging wireless business broadband market.
"Our business customers are moving more data than ever. They demand scaleable high-speed connections that are affordable, reliable and quick to provision, plus come with responsive customer service," said Bill Malloy, currently CEO of Sparkplug. All three companies deliver on this today, and that's why businesses are choosing us. Through the merger we are announcing today, the new company is well-positioned to meet these needs for more businesses in existing or new markets.
At the core of the three companies offerings are wireless broadband networks built and managed by Sparkplug that give customers a compelling addition to traditional wired networks. In addition to high-speed point-to-multi-point broadband access, the company offers a range of specialized point-to-point data transport services to connect business and enterprise customers throughout metropolitan areas or across states.
Compared to traditional wired networks, Sparkplug's wireless networks offer customers significant advantages. These include lower costs, higher symmetrical speeds, improved reliability and much greater flexibility. For example, customers can cost-effectively scale their bandwidth from 1 Mbps to 200 Mbps. For many customers the company's wireless broadband can supplement existing telecom services to provide extra capacity, redundancy and reliability for services such as Internet access, VOIP, video and other advanced IP services.
Experienced team
Each of the three companies comprising Sparkplug brings a growth-oriented business model and a proven ability to meet customer demand. At the helm of the companies are experienced telecommunications industry veterans with track records of leadership and a shared market vision.
Under the new structure, Malloy, currently CEO of Sparkplug, leads the organization and brings an extensive background in wireless as a senior executive with McCaw Cellular/AT&T Wireless and as venture partner with Ignition Partners. He is joined by Jeff Hardesty, currently CEO of Telespectra and formerly CFO of wireless provider, Extend America; and Neil Mulholland, CEO and founder of Prairie iNet. The company's chairman is Steve Hooper, a founding partner of Ignition Partners, former CEO of AT&T Wireless and, most recently, CEO of Nextlink Communications.
Complementary core strengths
The principals of Sparkplug, Prairie iNet and Telespectra have known each other professionally over the past several years. Each brings different complementary core strengths to the combined organization.
Sparkplug has been successful in providing wireless broadband services to businesses in two high-density metropolitan areas—Chicago and Nashville, Tenn.
Prairie iNet (www.prairieinet.net), one of the nation's top wireless Internet service providers, has successfully deployed and supported a wireless data network in multiple markets for the past six years. In many ways, we have been working together closely for years," said Mulholland, CEO of Prairie iNet. "Not only do we share a common vision, but the companies complement each other well, with each bringing unique capabilities to make us better as a combined entity."
Telespectra (www.telespectra.com), one of the largest broadband networks for business in the Southwest, brings more than 20 years of successful wireless network deployment for business, government and telecommunications carriers. The Telespectra network extends from Arizona to New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada and Southern California.
"As businesses deploy more IP-based services that are mission critical, scaleable high-quality committed bandwidth is a key enabler", said Jeff Hardesty, CEO of Telespectra. "This merger lets us extend our operational expertise in meeting these needs to more business customers across the combined company."
The merger of the three companies was led by Ignition Partners (www.ignitionpartners.com), a premier venture capital firm focused on investments in software and communications technology headquartered in Bellevue, Wash., along with The Greenspun Corporation, a privately-owned company headquartered in Henderson, Nevada, which holds a strong regional presence in media, communications, travel and tourism, gaming and technology.
Even with all of the capital invested in telecom infrastructure over the past decade, today's businesses have fewer choices than you think for affordable high-speed last-mile data connectivity that's easily scaleable," said Steve Hooper of Ignition Partners and Sparkplug chairman. "Through this merger Sparkplug brings together an established reputation of serving this market, coupled with the organizational and management clout it needs to meet the bandwidth needs of business customers around the country.
About Sparkplug
Sparkplug is a leading fixed wireless broadband service provider currently operating networks across five states, including the metropolitan markets of Chicago, Nashville, Des Moines, Phoenix and Las Vegas. The company offers a suite of high-speed data, voice over IP, and other managed services over its own network to business, education and government customers. All enjoy the benefits of fast, scalable and easy-to-deploy broadband service. Customers can choose from a complete range of symmetrical bandwidth service options starting at 2 Mbps with speeds up to 1 Gbps at a fraction of the typical cost. The company also provides high capacity data services and transport to many of the nation's leading telecommunications providers. For more information, visit www.sparkplug.net.
Media Inquiries:
Rob Goodman
McKenzie Worldwide
(503) 863-2004
robg@mckenzieworldwide.com
