Broadband Providers Can Securely Serve More Types of Local Businesses With New Calix SmartBiz Enhancements That Simplify Deployment

Rhea-AI Summary

Calix (NYSE: CALX) has announced significant enhancements to its SmartBiz™ solution and Broadband Platform, aimed at accelerating business market growth for broadband service providers (BSPs). The updates enable support for more types of small businesses, including medical clinics and dental practices with existing firewalls.

Key improvements include expanded Wi-Fi coverage capabilities for large properties, pre-provisioning features, and static IP support. According to a study by the Center on Rural Innovation, counties with over 80% broadband adoption show 213% higher business growth, 10% increase in self-employment, and 44% higher local GDP.

The enhanced platform offers:

• Support for businesses with existing security infrastructure
• Accelerated deployment through pre-provisioning in Calix Cloud
• Expanded marketing and sales support through the Calix Market Activation program
• Improved cloud capabilities for targeting and operational efficiency

Positive

• Platform enhancement expands addressable market to include healthcare and larger businesses
• Pre-provisioning feature reduces deployment costs and time
• Support for existing firewalls enables faster implementation
• Static IP capability broadens service offerings

Negative

• None.

Calix accelerates SmartBiz deployments, enabling support for more types of small businesses like medical clinics and dental practices with existing firewalls, while pre-provisioning and expanding coverage for Calix Wi-Fi systems simplify setup for large properties like golf courses and places of worship

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX) announced enhancements to SmartBiz™ and the Calix Broadband Platform that further accelerate business market growth for broadband service providers (BSPs). New platform enhancements enable BSPs to support more types of small businesses by streamlining SmartBiz delivery. Expanded SmartBiz capabilities give BSPs greater flexibility to support small businesses like healthcare and medical clinics that have existing firewalls and static IP requirements. Continued innovation for the Calix Wi-Fi systems portfolio enables BSPs to expand high-performance Wi-Fi coverage for small businesses with large physical footprints—indoors and outdoors. Finally, the ability to pre-provision Wi-Fi systems accelerates deployments to get small business owners up and running faster. Local BSPs leveraging the Calix Platform are uniquely positioned to fuel economic momentum in their communities by delivering secure services like SmartBiz to support sustained small business success.

Launched in 2023, SmartBiz is a purpose-built solution enabling BSPs to serve small businesses with managed Wi-Fi, advanced security, and network resiliency. Integrated with the Calix Platform, SmartBiz is easy to deploy, manage, and scale—helping BSPs reduce costs while growing revenue. A recent peer-reviewed economic study by the nonprofit Center on Rural Innovation (CORI) highlights the critical role local BSPs play in driving entrepreneurship and business investment and creating environments that foster small business growth. The study found that, in counties where broadband adoption exceeds 80 percent, business growth is 213 percent higher, self-employment rises by 10 percent, and local gross domestic product (GDP) is 44 percent higher compared to counties with lower broadband adoption.

The latest SmartBiz enhancements on the Calix Platform enable BSPs to:

• Meet the diverse needs of more small businesses, from large car dealerships and farms to healthcare clinics with existing security and business systems. The industry-leading Calix Wi-Fi systems portfolio gives BSPs a menu of Calix GigaSpire® and GigaPro™ systems to mix and match, enabling them to accommodate indoor and outdoor businesses that operate in large physical spaces like places of worship and golf courses. Additionally, SmartBiz now supports deployment behind existing firewalls, enabling rapid implementation for businesses with established security infrastructure like dentist practices, doctors’ offices, nursing homes, and pharmacies.

• Accelerate deployments to connect and protect small businesses more efficiently. With new SmartBiz pre-provisioning in Calix Cloud, BSPs can more quickly deploy small business connectivity through GigaSpire and GigaPro systems. This eliminates on-site provisioning, accelerates installations, and reduces technician time in the field—saving BSP resources while ensuring small businesses can benefit faster from SmartBiz. New updates to Calix Cloud® enable BSPs to assign static IP addresses to business devices—broadening their service capabilities and further minimizing time onsite.

• Sustain business market growth with enhanced sales and marketing support. The Calix Market Activation program hands BSPs the blueprint for SmartBiz launch success—including polished marketing plans, razor-sharp sales tools, and plug-and-play templates for websites, videos, digital ads, and classic outreach. Calix customers can access ready-to-use, customizable campaign materials for SmartBiz to promote differentiating features like outdoor Wi-Fi, along with targeted sales support tailored to specific small business verticals.

In 2024, Calix expanded capabilities in Calix Cloud and the Field Service App, enabling BSPs to easily grow their small business market share through enhanced targeting, acquisition, and operational efficiencies. Today’s announcement builds on that momentum, further streamlining deployments and driving sustained growth. With ongoing SmartBiz innovation, Calix empowers BSPs to seamlessly scale their small business offerings using the same integrated platform, systems, and workflows that support their residential subscribers.

“Our 18-year partnership with Calix has transformed our business and significantly enhanced the value we deliver to Kansans and Oklahomans,” said Carla Shearer, chief executive officer and general manager at SCTelcom. “Through the Calix Broadband Platform, we’ve been able to extend high-performance, secure connectivity with SmartBiz to small businesses across our footprint. Today’s updates further expand our market reach, enabling us to offer SmartBiz solutions to businesses previously beyond our service capabilities. Plus, the cloud efficiencies of the Calix Platform continue to support our growth while maintaining customer satisfaction scores in the 90s.”

“To stay competitive, broadband providers must evolve their offerings to drive real economic impact in their communities,” said Michael Weening, president and chief executive officer at Calix. “We have seen incredibly fast adoption of SmartBiz over the past two years, highlighting a clear market gap for a purpose-built small business solution. This presents a major opportunity for Calix customers to support the success of small businesses in their footprints by meeting the growing demand for secure small business connectivity that is tailored to the unique needs of myriad business types. The latest updates to the Calix Platform and SmartBiz simplify deployment and expand service capabilities, helping broadband providers support more businesses while driving their own growth to better serve their communities.”

Discover how new updates to the Calix Platform and SmartBiz accelerate BSP business market growth.

About Calix

Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX)—Calix is a platform, cloud, and managed services company. Broadband service providers leverage Calix’s broadband platform, cloud, and managed services to simplify their operations, subscriber engagement, and services; innovate for their consumer, business, and municipal subscribers; and grow their value for members, investors, and the communities they serve.

Our end-to-end platform and managed services democratize the use of data—enabling our customers of any size to operate efficiently, acquire subscribers, and deliver exceptional experiences. Calix is dedicated to driving continuous improvement in partnership with our growing ecosystem to support the transformation of our customers and their communities.

This press release contains forward-looking statements that are based upon management’s current expectations and are inherently uncertain. Forward-looking statements are based upon information available to us as of the date of this release, and we assume no obligation to revise or update any such forward-looking statement to reflect any event or circumstance after the date of this release, except as required by law. Actual results and the timing of events could differ materially from current expectations based on risks and uncertainties affecting Calix’s business. The reader is cautioned not to rely on the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Additional information on potential factors that could affect Calix’s results and other risks and uncertainties are detailed in its quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC and available at www.sec.gov.

Calix and the Calix logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Calix and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. A listing of Calix’s trademarks can be found at https://www.calix.com/legal/trademarks.html. Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250304085298/en/

Press Inquiries:

Zach Burger

669-369-1991

zach.burger@calix.com

Investor Inquiries:

Nancy Fazioli

investorrelations@calix.com

Source: Calix, Inc.

FAQ

What are the key enhancements to Calix SmartBiz platform announced in 2024?

The platform now supports businesses with existing firewalls, offers pre-provisioning features, enables static IP assignment, and provides expanded Wi-Fi coverage for large properties like golf courses and places of worship.

How does broadband adoption impact local business growth according to the CORI study?

Counties with over 80% broadband adoption show 213% higher business growth, 10% rise in self-employment, and 44% higher local GDP compared to areas with lower adoption.

What types of businesses can now be served by Calix SmartBiz platform?

The platform now serves medical clinics, dental practices, car dealerships, farms, places of worship, golf courses, nursing homes, and pharmacies with existing security infrastructure.

How does the new pre-provisioning feature benefit service providers using CALX SmartBiz?

Pre-provisioning in Calix Cloud eliminates on-site provisioning, accelerates installations, and reduces technician field time, saving resources while enabling faster business connectivity.