The RS&I Dealer Download: "The Next Phase of the Internet Race"

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Welcome to The Dealer Download, powered by RS&I.

For years, one of the biggest stories in broadband has been infrastructure. Carriers have invested heavily in fiber construction, fixed wireless, and other technologies designed to bring faster internet to more homes and businesses. The questions were largely about coverage: Who could build the network? How quickly could they expand? How many locations could they reach?

Those questions still matter, but another one is becoming increasingly important: Who wins the customer?

AT&T and Brightspeed provide two interesting examples. AT&T Internet Air has reached 2 million subscribers, with its second million added in roughly half the time it took to reach its first. Meanwhile, Brightspeed continues bringing fiber to hundreds of thousands of additional homes and businesses across states including Ohio, North Carolina, Texas, and South Carolina.

The technologies and strategies are different, but the business challenge eventually becomes the same. Once internet service is available, someone still has to help customers discover it, understand it, and choose it. For Authorized Dealers, that makes internet increasingly relevant to everyday customer conversations.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

AT&T Internet Air Has Reached 2 Million Subscribers

AT&T announced in July that Internet Air had surpassed 2 million subscribers. Reaching the first million took roughly two years, while the second million was added in approximately one year.

That acceleration demonstrates how fixed wireless is becoming a meaningful part of AT&T's broader home internet strategy. Fiber remains important, but it isn't the only way AT&T can extend its connectivity relationship into the home.

Convergence Isn't Limited to Fiber

One of the most interesting numbers behind Internet Air's growth is that 1 million subscribers also have AT&T wireless service.

That provides a clear example of convergence extending beyond fiber. A customer's wireless relationship can create an opportunity to discuss home internet, giving dealers another reason to think about the entire household connectivity relationship rather than treating wireless and internet as completely separate conversations.

The Retail Experience Is Becoming Simpler

Customers can now order AT&T Internet Air in an AT&T store and leave with the equipment rather than waiting for a traditional installation process.

For retail environments, simplicity matters. The easier it becomes to move from a customer conversation to an activated service, the easier it becomes to incorporate home internet into the normal sales process.

Brightspeed Is Expanding Fiber Across Multiple Markets

Brightspeed is approaching the opportunity from a different direction. Instead of extending an existing national wireless relationship into home internet, the company continues building fiber deeper into communities throughout its footprint.

More than 350,000 homes and businesses in Ohio can now access Brightspeed Fiber, while its North Carolina network has reached more than 736,000 locations. Additional construction continues in markets including Texas and South Carolina.

Every new fiber-enabled location expands the number of potential customers dealers may be able to reach.

A Fiber Passing Isn't the Finish Line

Completing construction doesn't automatically create a customer. Once fiber reaches a neighborhood, customers still need to know that service has become available and understand whether switching makes sense for them.

That's why customer acquisition becomes increasingly important as networks mature. The infrastructure creates an addressable market. Sales and marketing help convert that availability into actual subscribers.

AT&T and Brightspeed Are Starting From Different Places

AT&T already has a massive wireless customer base, creating opportunities to expand existing relationships into home internet through fiber or Internet Air where available.

Brightspeed is approaching the market differently, building fiber into communities across its 20-state footprint and then working to turn newly available locations into customers.

Different networks. Different starting points. But both ultimately compete for the same thing: the household internet relationship.

Why Dealers Can Add Value to the Internet Conversation

Customers generally aren't thinking about network strategy, carrier investment, or telecommunications architecture. They want practical answers.

Is service available at my address? Is it fast enough for what I do? Is it reliable? What are my options? And who can help me get connected?

An Authorized Dealer who understands the available products can help simplify those questions and guide customers toward an appropriate solution.

Don't Let the Conversation End at the First “No”

Internet availability can vary significantly by address. Fiber may be available at one location but not another. Another technology or provider may serve a location where the first option doesn't.

That makes product knowledge particularly valuable. Rather than treating a failed availability check as the end of the conversation, dealers should understand the other internet opportunities available through their portfolio.

Start With One Simple Question

Dealers don't necessarily need a complicated new sales process to uncover internet opportunities.

Start by asking:

“Who's doing your internet at home?”

From there, check the customer's address, understand what's available, ask about their current experience, and determine whether another option makes sense. A simple question can reveal an entirely new customer need.

Strategic Takeaway

The broadband market is entering a phase where network construction and customer acquisition increasingly work side by side. Carriers still need to expand infrastructure, but every newly serviceable home or business also creates a customer relationship that someone has to win.

AT&T Internet Air demonstrates how an existing wireless relationship can expand into home internet without requiring fiber at every address. Brightspeed demonstrates the other side of the equation: extensive fiber construction continually creates new locations where customer acquisition can begin.

For Authorized Dealers, the lesson is bigger than either carrier. Internet should become a normal part of the customer conversation.

Know the products available through your business. Understand the coverage. Check the address. Ask customers about their current internet experience. And don't assume the conversation is finished simply because the first option isn't available.

The infrastructure creates the opportunity. The dealer can help connect that opportunity with the customer.

You don't have to market everywhere. You just have to matter somewhere.