The speed in which our computing devices are able to access the information we need is a critical component in today's environment. Whether it is a student researching a project for homework or a large enterprise accessing cloud services to serve a global customer base of millions of people, speed is very important.

With the push of Google (News - Alert) and its gigabit network, companies across the country are competing to provide faster connections to their customers. Lightower Fiber Networks, the Northeast’s major metro fiber and bandwidth provider, is increasing its fiber network footprint in Chicago by laying down 40 miles of new fiber-optic cable over the next 12 months.

The company has a strong presence in the area with connections to major data center hubs. It moved to this market in 2013 after it merged with Sidera Networks, which added 350 miles of fiber to the company.

Although Chicago had in the past adequate fiber technology, the influx of mobile devices, cloud services, streaming video content and enterprise is straining the network. New fiber networks are necessary in order to meet local and international demand in one of the largest cities in the country.

Lightower provides high-performance networks for bandwidth intensive applications allowing customers to efficiently operate, scale, and grow in an extremely competitive world. By delivering communication services from 10 Mbps to 100 Gbps, it gives businesses optimal performance in the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Chicago Metro with connectivity to critical landing points internationally.

The company's network has: 7,500+ service locations; 20,000+ fiber route miles; 130 connected data centers; 40+ connected financial exchanges; and18 Lightower colocation centers. According to the company it can ensure up times of up to 99.999 percent because it owns and operates its dense all-fiber network.

Having the highest fiber density and building count of any metro fiber provider in the Northeast makes it the leading network provider in the financial services sector. Its networks carry trillions of dollars of trade every day, which is more than any other provider. This is made possible with its Xtreme Ultra-Low Latency Network, which delivers the lowest latency routes between critical exchanges and data centers in NY, NJ, and Chicago.