Nextlink: Re-Launching a Wireless Giant

With over $1 billion invested in Local Multipoint Distribution Service (LMDS) wireless spectrum, Nextlink owned the nation’s largest holdings in broadband wireless. But glitches in pilot hardware earned LMDS a bad rap. Stumbling on its market foray, Nextlink held back for years from pursuing a company re-launch.

Two changes unleashed new opportunity. First – the broadband boom. With the sudden advent of streaming video, social media and smart phone traffic, carriers needed more local bandwidth to prevent last mile networks from buckling under the weight of broadband demand. Second — with recent tech advances, LMDS had become rock solid. Nextlink made two strategic decisions: to re-launch Nextlink and take LMDS to market as a reliable, cost-effective alternative to local fiber connections; and to hire a seasoned PR agency that could quickly win national headlines.

Nextlink brought Crawford on board. We responded with a PR campaign to propel awareness of Nextlink as the answer to America’s bandwidth crunch.

The launch won major coverage in trade, vertical, local and national media including: Atlanta Journal Constitution, San Diego Union Tribune, Network World, Washington Post, Washington Business Journal, San Antonio Business Journal, Dow Jones News Service, Reuters, San Jose Mercury News, Kansas City Star, Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, St. Paul Pioneer Press, Telephony, Telecommunications Magazine, Wireless Week, RCR Wireless, Federal Computer Week, Xchange, TelecomWeb and TMCnet.

Nextlink’s debut was so successful that media and customers forgot the old taint associated with LMDS. Who says there are no second acts in American business?