Calix SmartMDU Will Enable Broadband Providers To Transform How They Serve Tenants and Property Owners of Multi-Dwelling Units

SAN JOSE, CA—October 16, 2023—Today, at its annual customer success and innovation conference, broadband platform company Calix, Inc. (NYSE: CALX) announced SmartMDU™. SmartMDU is purpose-built for any broadband service provider (BSP) to service multi-dwelling units (MDUs), both inside and outside their current footprint. SmartMDU will enable BSPs to go to market with a revolutionary value proposition for property management customers and their tenants. When it launches next year, SmartMDU will be the only solution in the market that enables BSPs to deliver cost-effective managed Wi-Fi services—once only available in luxury high-rise living—to all multi-family apartment buildings.

Calix customers can leverage SmartMDU in seamless conjunction with other managed services on the Calix platform to enable property managers to deliver even greater value to tenants. To further optimize the experience for MDU tenants, BSPs can deploy residential managed services to provide individually controlled and personalized tenant broadband experiences. Broadband providers can also choose to deploy Calix SmartBiz™ to serve small businesses within the MDU property or deliver extended Wi-Fi coverage outside of the MDU property with Calix SmartTown™.

Understanding tenants’ increased broadband needs, property managers with SmartMDU will have the option of extending the broadband-inclusive lease agreements used for luxury rentals to the wider MDU market to attract all tenants seeking seamless connectivity. It will also allow BSPs to negotiate long-term contracts—typically, seven to 10 years.

SmartMDU will deliver:  

• Zero truck rolls for BSPs thanks to automated self-service options for tenants. SmartMDU will allow property managers to offer automated, self-service options to tenants, who can request service upgrades or value-added services—like advanced network controls with ExperienceIQ—without ever rolling a truck.
• Easily customizable Wi-Fi solutions enable property managers to serve every type of tenant. MDUs with a mix of residential and commercial units—such as a store or café on the first floor—can be accommodated by BSPs with SmartHome and SmartBiz to meet the property manager’s needs.
• Managed Wi-Fi for IoT and security networks will enhance exceptional subscriber experiences. SmartMDU will provide managed Wi-Fi for IoT (internet of things) systems and security networks for enhanced property management, ensuring automated door locks, temperature control, and cameras stay connected and work seamlessly.

SmartMDU will fully optimize a BSP’s MDU operations and support services. Integrating Calix Cloud® with property management systems will transform how BSPs and property managers automate service delivery to provide exceptional broadband experiences to their tenants, visitors to the property, and the essential IoT devices used to maintain the building and its systems.

“We are excited for the opportunity that SmartMDU will open to our multi-family complexes,” said Brian Stading, chief executive officer at Lumos. “Our investment with Calix helps us further differentiate our fiber internet offerings against our competitors by making it easy to deploy new broadband experiences our customers need. We recently launched SmartTown to allow students in our communities to stay connected to educational resources even when they aren’t on school grounds. With SmartMDU, Calix will provide yet another way to serve our customers with broadband experiences that enrich their lives—this time in the multi-family housing communities they call home.”

Because SmartMDU is integrated for the Calix platform, it will be easy for BSPs to deploy, manage, and support the solution. Calix customers will be able to adopt and launch SmartMDU in weeks rather than months or years—turning up services faster and accelerating time to revenue.

Award-winning enablement from Calix helps BSPs easily open new markets or grow existing ones. Calix Professional Services provides Wi-Fi design support, training, and validation to help BSPs accelerate installs, operationalize, and extend their brands into MDU communities. Smart Start for Managed Services and Calix Education Services will help inform and align teams as they adopt, deploy, and manage SmartMDU across their communities.

“No solution exists today that enables BSPs to simplify their go-to-market strategy for the myriad MDUs in the market—from a duplex to an apartment building,” said Michael Weening, president and chief executive officer at Calix. “The goal of SmartMDU is to bring together the powerful capabilities of the Calix broadband platform to enable BSPs to meet the unique business needs of each property. It will simplify Wi-Fi management across indoor, outdoor, and common areas, streamline integration into back-office property management systems, and enable secure connectivity for IoT systems. By combining elements of our residential managed services, SmartBiz, and SmartTown, we will enable every Calix customer to address virtually all property use cases—thereby simplifying their business, exciting property owners and their tenants, and enabling the BSP to grow their business at the highest possible margins thanks to a scalable and efficient business model.”

ConneXions attendees can check out SmartMDU in the Innovation Showcase at the Wynn in Las Vegas until October 17.

Learn how SmartMDU will revolutionize the MDU broadband market with a managed Wi-Fi solution to optimize the role of the property manager and deliver an unparalleled experience for tenants.