FairPoint Communications expects to grow its Ethernet Fiber to the Tower (FTTT) mobile backhaul business in northern New England by at least 39 percent this year, as it increases the number of mobile connection points to more than 1,300 based on signed contracts with wireless carriers. The company said that at the end of 2012 its carrier contracts had grown to include more than 950 mobile connection points on its fiber backhaul network. On any particular cell tower, there can be one or more of these connections, know in the industry as Ethernet virtual connections, or EVCs. The company said it also intends to expand its Ethernet mobile backhaul services to more than 1,000 towers by year's end in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. To date, FairPoint has invested over $200 million in Vantage Point, an IP/MPLS network that it uses for both its wholesale and retail business customers. Like other wholesale providers, FairPoint has been building out its fiber network accommodate new wireless radio technologies, including small cells. For more on FairPoint, see this FierceTelecom article.