Initiative focused on catalyzing building a new platform to support tech, creative, and digital innovation.

Today, a collaborative partnership was announced between Spirit Communications and SOCO, Inc. to provide gigabit speed broadband internet access at all SOCO locations in the Columbia, SC region. This first of its kind collaboration will be powered by the Spirit Fiber Network “Lighting up BullStreet” with symmetrical Gigabit Internet capabilities with a future proof platform.

The partnership is focused on building an ecosystem of support and a platform for creators to build new products and services by combining SOCO’s Coworking environment – a collaborative community of 50+ creators – and a direct connection to both Spirit’s Gigabit infrastructure and additional offerings supporting the technology community. In addition, the partnership will allow SOCO customers direct access to an array of products and services available to Spirit customers in the innovation community.

“What does this mean?” mused Greg Hilton, one of the cofounders of SOCO. “It means the SOCO community, at both our Vista and Bull Street locations, will be able to access internet speeds that are 50 – 100 times faster than normal residential connections. We think this is going to power a whole new generation of innovators in Columbia. This is a first.”

Greg Guerra, EVP of Business Development and Strategy at Spirit Communications added “Spirit and SOCO are already off to a great start as we are collaborating with Greg on a number of projects in the Vista and given the success of our product launch at Spirit Communications Park, the next phase of gigabit deployment at SOCO is going to be a real technology showcase for Columbia.”

“SOCO’s workspaces, events and community of creators, coupled with Spirit’s Gigabit infrastructure means that innovators in the Midlands will have a powerful new tool for doing big things. We’re going to build some cool stuff,” mentioned Gene Crawford, a partner with SOCO and Campus Director for The Iron Yard Academy.

SOCO and other businesses will receive the benefits of speeds up to 10 Gigabit along with the latest in Wireless Internet Wave2 technology which will blanket BullStreet allowing lightning fast access to social media, downloads and work files. So whether you are at Spirit Communications Park enjoying a game or at your workstation you will be powered up and ready to roll 100x faster than on traditional networks.

This announcement also comes on the tail of SOCO’s announcement that it is expanding to a second location in the iconic BullStreet development, opening in the summer of 2016. “We’ve found an incredible home for our second location and really great partners in Spirit, The Iron Yard and Hughes Development and we can’t wait to be a part of something that’s going to redefine this city. We’re just warming up…” stated Hilton.

“Spirit Communications is thrilled to be working with the SOCO team as well as Bob Hughes and Mayor Steve Benjamin as we continue our mission to bring leading edge technology advancements to our City and the Carolinas,” said Bob Keane, President and CEO of Spirit Communications. Keane continued, “providing Main Street with reliable Wi-Fi access and Internet connectivity is just one of many services we have brought to the City of Columbia. Now, the future is here as we enable Gigabit speeds, Wi-Fi and enhanced products to BullStreet and Spirit Communications Park.

About SOCO

SOCO is a community of creators that have come together to do more, build more and be more. Our mission is simple but powerful. Fundamentally change the way people work, connect and realize their full potential through community. We do this by providing compelling spaces where our people can work and work together; incredible events and activities to help people connect; and a range of learning opportunities to hone their skills and grow their craft.

www.soco-work.com @socowork

About Spirit Communications

Headquartered in Columbia, South Carolina, Spirit Communications provides voice, data, Internet and fiber optic solutions, along with a full suite of Cloud services to commercial businesses, carriers and government agencies across the Southeast. The company’s mission is to enable customers to transform their operations through fast, stable and secure offerings that flex with business demand. Ranked among the top 35 privately-held firms in South Carolina, Spirit Communications serves thousands of customers in over 150 service locations throughout South Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia. Spirit Communications is owned by eleven Independent Telephone Companies in South Carolina. For more information, visit www.spiritcom.com. @Spirit_B4B