Zayo Group Acquires Northwest Telephone, Inc. (NTI)

Louisville,
Colo. (PRWEB) June 2, 2008 -- Zayo Group, a regional provider of
bandwidth and telecom solutions, announced it has closed its
acquisition of Northwest Telephone, Inc. (NTI), a privately owned
competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC) and interexchange carrier
(IXC) currently operating in Washington, Oregon and Idaho.

Wenatchee, Wash.-based NTI now becomes part of Zayo Bandwidth, Zayo
Group's business unit that provides fiber-based bandwidth solutions to
carriers, web-centric companies, public and educational institutions
and enterprises. Zayo Bandwidth services include private line,
wavelength, Ethernet, Internet and colocation. With the acquisition,
Zayo Bandwidth's network now encompasses 18,500 metro and regional
fiber route miles, serving more than 1,100 on-net locations in 20
states.

Founded in 1999, NTI brings to Zayo a carrier-class fiber optic network
with 1,500 route miles of fiber in Washington, Oregon and Idaho. NTI's
footprint connects rural and underserved markets to larger Tier 1
markets with regional rings that lend to lower latency and increased
network efficiency. Additionally, much like Zayo, NTI has been integral
in creating end-to-end solutions for the wireless industry.

"This acquisition enables Zayo to expand our network in an area
experiencing rapid growth in the technology sector," said John Scarano,
COO of Zayo Group and President of Zayo Bandwidth. "By establishing a
presence on the West coast and connecting to unique markets in the
region, Zayo is positioned to meet the increasing bandwidth needs of
carriers and enterprises in the Pacific Northwest."

With this acquisition, Zayo Bandwidth will operate a unique fiber
optic network statewide in Washington as well as to Portland, Ore., and
Coeur D'Alene, Idaho. Customers will have access to nine LEC central
offices, key data centers and will soon have diverse routes in and out
of Quincy and Wenatchee, Wash.

Though terms of the agreement are not being released, NTI customers
will continue to receive high quality support from the NTI team they
know and benefit from Zayo's extensive fiber footprint and access to
capital for network expansion. Zayo's commitment to maintaining a
strong and growing network along with the unique network assets of NTI
make Zayo Bandwidth a key provider for carriers and enterprises seeking
fiber-based bandwidth in the Pacific Northwest.

About Zayo Group
Based in Louisville, Colo., Zayo Group (www.zayo.com [1])
is a regional provider of telecom services -- including bandwidth,
voice and managed services -- to carrier, enterprise, SME and
government customers. Zayo Group provides its service over a fiber
network that spans 125 markets in 20 states. Zayo Group consists of
three complimentary business units with combined revenue of $160M.

Zayo Group has strong financial backing from five experienced telecom and Internet investors: Battery Ventures (www.battery.com [2]), Columbia Capital (www.colcap.com [3]), Centennial Ventures (www.centennial.com [4]), MC Venture Partners (www.mcventurepartners.com [5]) and Oak Investment Partners (www.oakinv.com [6]).
Zayo's significant financial backing provides the flexibility to extend
and enhance its services and fiber network to support the
ever-increasing bandwidth appetite of its customers.

About Zayo Bandwidth
Zayo Bandwidth owns and operates fiber
optic networks in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest and Pacific
Northwest, with additional metro coverage in Memphis, Tenn. Zayo
Bandwidth provides fiber based bandwidth solutions including private
line, wavelength, Ethernet, Internet and colocation and serves
carriers, web-centric companies, public institutions and enterprises.
Zayo's mission is to provide fiber-based bandwidth, responsive
solutions and a growing network. Visit us at www.zayo.com/bandwidth [7].