O1 Communications Sells SMB Customer Base to TelePacific

Following regulatory approval, TelePacific will assume responsibility for service and support of O1 Communications' small to medium-size business (SMB) customers.

O1 Communications, a competitive local exchange carrier serving retail and wholesale business customers, announced it has signed a definitive acquisition agreement to sell the company's retail customer base to TelePacific Communications, a business telecommunications provider in California and Las Vegas. O1 Communications will retain its wholesale customer base and its name, the company said.

Under the terms of the agreement, following regulatory approval, TelePacific will acquire O1 Communications' SMB (small and midsize business) accounts and assets primarily dedicated to serving that customer segment. The transaction will include purchase of O1 Communications' Sacramento data center. Going forward, O1 Communications said it would focus exclusively on its wholesale and carrier business: O1's wholesale services include call origination, call termination and SIP (session initiation protocol) peering services, with new services in development.

TelePacific provides services through a combination of TelePacific-owned switches and network infrastructure, including its own and leased fiber-optic network assets. Offering local and long distance voice, dedicated Internet access, private networking and data transport services as well as bundled voice and Internet solutions and wholesale services, TelePacific claims more than 39,000 customer accounts with more than 1.1 million access lines in service.

"We believe this transaction is positive for all our customers," said Brad Jenkins, CEO of O1 Communications. "TelePacific has the network assets and resources to provide our SMB customers the same high standards of support and service reliability they previously experienced. The two companies will work closely together to ensure a seamless transition for O1's SMB customers."

Following regulatory approval, TelePacific will assume responsibility for service and support of O1 Communications' SMB customers. O1 Communications will continue operations from a new headquarters in El Dorado Hills, Calif. Dick Jalkut, president and CEO of TelePacific, said O1's SMB customer base is a perfect fit for TelePacific as both companies share high standards for customer service and support. "We are looking forward to serving these new customers," Jalkut said.

In addition to acquiring the assets of the O1 SMB business, TelePacific said it would also be offering employment to all SMB employees upon close. "Our No. 1 goal is to make the transition as seamless and successful as possible to our new customers which means giving them the same experience and first-line support that they are used to on a daily basis," Jalkut said. "We know that retaining the O1 employees are our best resource for meeting this goal."