The internet service provider industry is famous for its dominance by a few giant firms, but residents of Phoenix and Tucson could soon have a new option to access the internet as a Utah startup prepares to expand into the Grand Canyon State.
WeLink, a Lehi, Utah-based company, announced Tuesday that it is bringing its 5G wireless broadband services to some residents in the Phoenix and Tucson metro areas. The company is also expanding in the Las Vegas and Henderson, Nevada metros.
WeLink works by connecting individual homes to the internet via small, rooftop antennae which, taken together, form larger mesh coverage areas that blanket entire neighborhoods. WeLink saves money by not relying on buried fiber optic cable, instead using its radio technology.
WeLink uses 5G millimeter wave technology, which is a very high frequency connection that allows the company to achieve gigabit speeds and capacity similar to a hardwired fiber connection.
But WeLink is not totally free from fiber; the company leases some fiber optic bandwidth from existing service providers to set up internet generating hubs. WeLink plans to set up 12 hubs across the Valley, which will then beam internet connectivity out to the antenna dotting the rooftops of its customers.
“We try so hard to be the anti-cable company, to be a new modern ISP, that delights people,” WeLink President Luke Langford told the Business Journal. “Ultimately, our technology coupled with that philosophy and approach is what is, I think, going to make us a great alternative for people in Arizona.”
People interested in getting WeLink must register with the company and see if the service is available in their area.
Single-family homes
Langford said that if a given area is not currently covered by WeLink, prospective customers will join a waitlist, which the company then factors into its expansion across the Valley.
Installation of the WeLink equipment is free and comes with two mesh WiFi routers from Eero, an Amazon company, for inside the home. Month-to-month plans cost $80/month and WeLink offers cheaper rates if customers sign longer contracts, including loyalty bonuses for long-time customers.
"We're rewarding loyalty, as opposed to this weird, perverse world that some of the competitors have, where they give you one price and then thank you for staying with them for a year by jacking your rates up," Langford said.
Apartment dwellers looking to break past cable company hegemony will have to wait. For now, WeLink is only working with single-family residences, but Langford said apartment hookups may be possible in the future.
Hiring in Arizona
Kevin Ross founded WeLink in 2018 and serves as the company’s chairman and CEO. Ross and Langford, who has been with WeLink since its early days, previously worked together at Vivint Smart Home Inc. (NYSE: VVNT); Langford co-founded Vivint Wireless and Ross served as its chief strategy officer.
In January of this year WeLink raised $185 million in outside funding from Digital Alpha Advisors. Digital Alpha is based in Henderson, Nevada and the fund has a strategic agreement in place with Cisco System, which grants it preferred access to Cisco’s commercial opportunities that need financing.
The funding influx has been and will continue to be used to help WeLink expand into new markets in 2022.
WeLink already employs about 100 people in Arizona, but it is currently looking to hire more people in Chandler, Gilbert, Phoenix and Tucson.
