Airband Communications, the largest fixed-wireless voice and data provider for businesses in the U.S., announced today that it is again ranked among the fastest growing, privately held companies headquartered in the Dallas metroplex. On Nov. 14, Airband received the Dallas 100^™ Award from the SMU Cox Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship for the second consecutive year.

“Airband’s consistent growth and solid financial performance are testaments to the value, reliability and security of our voice and data services. Since our 2010 merger with Sparkplug Communications, Airband has continued its market expansion in response to demand for high-quality data connectivity solutions,” said Airband CEO Michael Ruley. “We are proud to be recognized with the Dallas 100 Award again this year. Our entire team works hard to ensure that Airband is one of the area’s most innovative and industry-leading companies.”

Airband’s high-quality, reliable and secure data connectivity, high-speed Internet access, and voice services, including hosted voice over IP (VoIP) services, support essential business functions and improve enterprise productivity. In addition, Airband’s wholly owned, fixed-wireless network, its dedicated Internet access and full suite of IP-based voice services bypass local phone and cable infrastructures. Equally important, Airband gives customers the flexibility to make bandwidth adjustments, often within a few hours, that correlate with dynamic business environments.

Further demonstrating its recent growth in the industry, Airband’s channel sales doubled in 2011, and in 2012, the company completed a significant round of capital improvements to future-proof its core network.

“We are making smart investments in equipment and a variety of wireless technologies to meet enterprises’ demand for higher bandwidth connections, which is a result of businesses’ insatiable appetite for cloud-based applications,” said Ruley. “Ongoing capital investments are at the heart of Airband’s long-term growth strategy.”

Airband, which was founded in 2000, continues to thrive in Dallas, where the company has approximately 60 corporate employees. Airband also operates key markets in Austin, Fort Worth and Houston, in addition to nationwide markets, such as Atlanta; Baltimore; Fort Lauderdale; Las Vegas; Los Angeles; Miami; Orange County, Calif.; Orlando; Philadelphia; Phoenix; San Antonio; San Diego and Washington, D.C.

The Dallas 100 Awards were created to promote economic growth and innovation while celebrating the success of local enterprises and job creation. Each year, the awards program analyzes the business environment and identifies the 100 fastest growing, privately held companies in Dallas. In order to be considered for the award, businesses must meet the following criteria:

• Be independent, privately held corporations, proprietorships or partnerships as of May 1, 2012, and must have at least three years history and not be a non-profit organization
• Be headquartered in the Dallas metroplex area
• Have sales of more than $500,000, but less than $75 million in fiscal year 2009
• Have a three-year sales history that reflects growth during the three-year sales period
• Have a credit report and character satisfactory to the Dallas 100, determined at the sole discretion of the Dallas 100

About SMU Cox

SMU's Cox School of Business offers a full range of business education programs, including BBA, full-time MBA, Professional MBA (PMBA), Executive MBA (EMBA), Master of Science in Accounting, Master of Science in Entrepreneurship, Master of Science in Finance and Executive Education. The school also offers a number of unique resources and activities for students, ranging from its Business Leadership Center (BLC), Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship, Maguire Energy Institute and Global Leadership Program to its Associate Board Executive Mentoring Program and an international alumni network with chapters in more than 20 countries.

About Airband

Airband Communications, Inc. is the largest fixed-wireless voice and data provider for businesses in the U.S. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio of high-speed Internet access, point-to-point data services, Voice over IP, security and other managed solutions – delivered over one of the industry’s most scalable last-mile networks. Airband bypasses the local phone and cable companies to provide faster provisioning intervals, immediate scalability and complete redundancy for its customers. Thousands of businesses nationwide already count on Airband for their broadband service. For more information, please visit www.airband.com.