AT&T (NYSE: T) says it has achieved its goal of passing more than 30 million U.S. consumer and business locations with its fiber broadband network, ahead of its original plan to reach that bogey by year-end 2025. In its 1Q25 earnings call in April, the company at the time said it expected to reach the 30 million passings milestone by mid-year. Now, having met that objective just five months into the year, AT&T is expressing confidence in its plans to extend its network to approximately 60 million total fiber locations passed by the end of 2030.
It plans to reach that number through the combined actions of growing its in-region fiber network organically, leveraging its Gigapower joint venture in out-of-region locations, negotiating commercial open-access agreements, and establishing public-private partnerships where appropriate.
Added to that mix is AT&T’s recently announced plans to acquire substantially all of Lumen Technologies’ (NYSE: LUMN) Mass Markets fiber business that includes 1.1 million fiber customers and 4.3 million fiber locations across 11 states, Inside Towers reported.
Through all of these tactical measures, the company will market its fiber broadband services under the AT&T Fiber brand. At the end of 1Q25, AT&T reported 29.5 million locations passed and 9.6 million customers connected with fiber.
For the past two years, AT&T has been growing its subscriber base at an annual rate of over one million fiber net adds. Over the next five and a half years, AT&T expects to substantially grow that base as it doubles where the AT&T Fiber brand is available today.
A large base of fiber subscribers is integral to AT&T’s convergence strategy. In AT&T’s parlance, convergence means selling AT&T Mobility service to AT&T Fiber customers. The assumption is that a converged customer drives higher average revenue per account or ARPA and tends to stay with the company for longer periods of time.
Together, these factors contribute significantly to service revenues and cash flow. At the end of the first quarter, AT&T reported 3.9 million converged customers, accounting for over 40 percent of its fiber customer base.
During its Q1 earnings call, AT&T reiterated its 2025 capex guidance in the $22 billion range, largely driven by its fiber deployment and wireless network modernization. WIth the emphasis on convergence, the company appears likely to spend more than half of total capex on its fiber broadband build, according to Inside Towers Intelligence estimates.
By John Celentano, Inside Towers Business Editor
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