AT&T moved to bolster its fibre backhaul coverage by tapping Frontier Communications’ network, a move which involves the operator deploying mobile equipment at the latter’s facilities.

The agreement enables AT&T to expand its network into areas not covered by its own fibre network in all 25 states where Frontier Communications has a presence.

A representative for AT&T told Mobile World Live it will “strategically begin to centralise” baseband units “where it makes sense to do so for operational efficiencies”.

Frontier Communication’s footprint is complementary to AT&T’s existing network, which could accelerate its 5G deployment.

AT&T is the first customer to rent space in Frontier’s central offices.

The backhaul move builds on an agreement struck in 2021 involving Frontier Communications delivering fibre connectivity to large enterprise customers outside AT&T’s footprint.

In 2022, Frontier Communications announced it was halfway through a move to deploy fibre to 10 million locations by end-2025.

AT&T executives have continually stressed fibre expansion is one of their top priorities, as the company aims to cover 30 million locations by end-2025.