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{{short description|American telecommunications company}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Cincinnati Bell, Inc.
| trade_name = Altafiber
| logo = Altafiber logo 2022.svg
| image = AfHeadquaters.jpg
| image_caption = Altafiber's headquarters
| type = [[Subsidiary]]
| traded_as = 
| foundation = {{start date and age|1873}}
| area_served = Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Hawaii
| location = [[Cincinnati|Cincinnati, Ohio]], United States
| key_people = {{plainlist|
* Leigh R. Fox <small>([[President (corporate title)|President]] & [[Chief executive officer|CEO]])</small>
* Greg Wheeler <small>([[Chief operating officer|COO]])</small>
* Joshua T. Duckworth <small>([[Chief financial officer|CFO]])</small>
* Ronald Beerman <small>([[Chief network officer|CNO]])</small>
* Kevin Murray <small>([[Chief information officer|CIO]])</small><ref name="10-K 2019">{{cite web|title=Form 10-K|publisher=Cincinnati Bell|date=February 22, 2019|access-date=October 23, 2019|url=http://investor.cincinnatibell.com/static-files/7db92de9-522e-4cbd-a103-e7ebec6a667a#page=128|format=PDF}}{{Dead link|date=August 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
}}
| num_employees = 5,350
| num_employees_year = 2023
| parent = [[Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets]]
| industry = [[Telecommunications]]
| subsid = {{plainlist|
* Cincinnati Bell Telephone
* CBTS
* Cincinnati Bell Any Distance
* OnX Canada
* Agile Networks
* [[Hawaiian Telcom]]
}}
| products = [[Local telephone service]], [[IPTV]] [[Internet service provider|internet]]
| revenue = {{increase}} [[US$]]1.599 billion (2020)
| operating_income = {{decrease}} [[US$]]66.0 million (2020)
| net_income = {{increase}} -[[US$]]55.6 million (2020)
| assets = {{increase}} [[US$]]2.668 billion (2020)
| equity = {{increase}} [[US$]]191.1 million (2020)
| homepage = {{URL|https://www.altafiber.com/}}
| footnotes = <ref name=AnnualR2020>{{cite web|title=Cincinnati Bell, Inc. 2020 Annual Report|url=https://s24.q4cdn.com/783902464/files/doc_financials/2020/q4/CBB-10-K-2020.pdf |website=Cincinnati Bell |accessdate=29 July 2021|date=31 December 2020}}</ref>
}}

'''Cincinnati Bell, Inc.''', doing business as '''Altafiber''',<ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=FOX19 Digital |date=2021-09-07 |title=Cincinnati Bell bought in $2.9B deal |url=https://www.fox19.com/2021/09/07/cincinnati-bell-bought-29b-deal/ |access-date=2024-02-19 |website=www.fox19.com |language=en}}</ref> is a regional [[telecommunications service provider]] based in [[Cincinnati]], [[Ohio]], United States. It provides [[landline]] telephone, [[Fiber-optic communication|fiber-optic]] Internet, and [[Internet Protocol television|IPTV]] services through its [[Subsidiary|subsidiaries]] '''Altafiber Home Phone''' and [[Hawaiian Telcom]], which are the [[incumbent local exchange carrier]]s for the [[Cincinnati metropolitan area|Greater Cincinnati]] metropolitan area (aka "The Tri-State") and [[Hawaii]]. Other subsidiaries provide enterprise [[information technology]] services and [[long distance calling]].

Cincinnati Bell was founded in 1873 as a [[telegraph]] company and for much of its history was a [[Bell System]] franchisee. In the 1990s, Cincinnati Bell expanded into [[Internet service provider|Internet access]] and [[Mobile network operator|mobile phone]] services. The company divested its mobile phone service in 2014 to focus on enterprise and fiber-optic services.<ref name="Enquirer Pichler" /> It was acquired in September 2021 by [[Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets]], and began doing business as Altafiber in March 2022.<ref name="CBC Macquarie" /><ref name="enq-alta" />

==History==
[[File:CincinnatiBell.jpg|thumb|left|The [[Cincinnati and Suburban Telephone Company Building]] is a registered historic building.]]

Cincinnati Bell was founded as the '''City and Suburban Telegraph Association''' on July 5, 1873. Founder Charles Kilgour had run the [[Cincinnati Street Railway]] with his brother John but became homebound after an accident and began running his business from home via [[Electrical telegraph|telegraph]]. The City and Suburban Telegraph Association ran telegraph lines between homes and businesses beginning in 1873, three years before the invention of the [[telephone]]. In 1878, it gained exclusive rights to the [[Bell Telephone Company|Bell]] franchise within a {{convert|25|mi|adj=on}} radius of Cincinnati, becoming the first telephone exchange in Ohio and the tenth in the United States. It has substantially the same three-state [[incumbent local exchange carrier]] territory today. On August 21, 1877, it signed its first telephone customer, the Cincinnati Gas-Light and Coke Company (later known as [[Cincinnati Gas and Electric]]).<ref name="Enquirer Suess">{{cite news|title=Cincinnati Bell service is older than the telephone|first=Jeff|last=Suess|work=[[The Cincinnati Enquirer]] |date=March 4, 2019|access-date=October 23, 2019|url=https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2019/03/04/cincinnati-bell-service-older-than-telephone/3058242002/}}</ref><ref name="CincyMag salute">{{cite magazine|title=A salute to Cincinnati Bell|first=Frank E.|last=Smith|magazine=[[Cincinnati (magazine)|Cincinnati]]|publisher=Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce|date=December 1973|page=4|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DOsCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA4|via=Google Books}}</ref>

The company was renamed '''Cincinnati and Suburban Bell Telephone Company''' in 1903.

From 1930 to 1952, the company converted its exchanges from staffed switchboards to [[Automatic telephone exchange|dial service]]. Seven-digit dialing was introduced in 1962.<ref name="Enquirer Suess" /> In 1968, electromechanical switching equipment was replaced by one of the first [[electronic switching system]]s.<ref name="CincyMag salute" /> The company formally simplified its name to Cincinnati Bell in 1971.

In May 1999, the [[Public Utilities Commission of Ohio]] awarded Cincinnati Bell Long Distance the right to offer local wireline telephone service in 55 counties outside its incumbent territory and the company began to resell business local phone service in these counties, in competition with incumbent carrier [[Ameritech]].<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/1999/05/03/daily24.html | title=Bell to compete with Ameritech | work=[[American City Business Journals]] | date=May 6, 1999}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/1999/07/19/story8.html | title=Bell taking on Ameritech in Ohio markets | work=[[American City Business Journals]] | date=July 19, 1999}}</ref>

During the 1990s, Cincinnati Bell acquired a nationwide transmission network formerly known as [[IXC Communications]] and changed its corporate name to "Broadwing Communications", although the local telephone operations continued to operate under the traditional Cincinnati Bell name. The acquisition fell short of expectations due to intense competition and lackluster demand and left Broadwing with over ${{format price|2000000000}} in debt.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2003/02/24/daily13.html | title=Broadwing sells broadband unit for $129M | work=[[American City Business Journals]] | date=February 23, 2003}}</ref> In 2004, the holding company divested the long-distance operation as [[Broadwing Corporation]] and changed its name back to Cincinnati Bell.

In 2002, Cincinnati Bell sold Cincinnati Bell Directory, consisting of its directory operations, to Spectrum Equity. The resulting company is named [[CBD Media]]. The sale marked the first time a former [[Bell System]]-affiliated company had sold off its directory operations. In 2003, when [[BellSouth]] exited the payphone market, some former BellSouth payphones in Kentucky were sold to Cincinnati Bell.

In 2017, Cincinnati Bell acquired [[Toronto, Ontario|Toronto]]-based [[OnX Enterprise Solutions]] for ${{format price|201000000}}.<ref>{{cite news |last = Moritz |first = Scott |date = July 10, 2017 |url = https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-07-10/cincinnati-bell-to-buy-hawaiian-telcom-onx-for-851-million |title= Cincinnati Bell to Buy Hawaiian Telcom, OnX for $851 Million |work = [[Bloomberg News|Bloomberg]] |access-date = October 25, 2017}}</ref><ref name="10-K 2019" /> On July 2, 2018, Cincinnati Bell acquired [[Hawaiian Telcom|Hawaiian Telcom Holdco, Inc.]], parent of local telephone company Hawaiian Telcom, for ${{format price|650000000}}.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/2018/07/02/cincinnati-bell-completes-acquisition-of-hawaiian.html |title=Cincinnati Bell completes acquisition of Hawaiian Telcom, Komeiji named president | first=Anna | last=Hrushka | work=[[American City Business Journals]] | date=July 2, 2018}}</ref> The Hawaiian Telcom acquisition grew Cincinnati Bell's fiber network to over {{convert|14000|mi||adj=pre|route}}.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.fiercetelecom.com/telecom/cincinnati-bell-s-onx-hawaiian-telcom-acquisitions-solidify-fiber-and-consulting|title=Cincinnati Bell's OnX, Hawaiian Telcom acquisitions solidify fiber and consulting capabilities, but investors expect execution {{!}} FierceTelecom|website=www.fiercetelecom.com|date=December 2017|language=en|access-date=2017-12-06}}</ref>

In September 2021, Cincinnati Bell was acquired by [[Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets]].<ref name="CBC Macquarie">{{cite news | url=https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2020/03/13/its-nowofficial-cincinnati-bell-acquired.html | title=It's now official: Cincinnati Bell acquired | first=Andy | last=Brownfield | work=[[American City Business Journals]] | date=March 13, 2020}}</ref>

On March 2, 2022, shortly after its acquisition by Macquarie, the company announced it would begin [[doing business as]] "Altafiber". The company's legal name, Cincinnati Bell Inc., was not immediately affected.<ref name="enq-alta">{{cite web|url=https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2022/03/02/cincinnati-bell-changes-name-altafiber/9333350002/|title=Cincinnati Bell changes name to Altafiber. Cincinnati will be going all-fiber, CEO says.|first=Randy|last=Tucker|work=[[The Cincinnati Enquirer]]|date=March 2, 2022|access-date=March 2, 2022}}</ref>

===Relationship to the Bell System===
[[File:CincinnatiBell (vectorized).svg|thumb|right|Cincinnati Bell's residential landline service continued to use the 1969 [[Saul Bass]]-designed classic Bell logo until 2016.<ref>{{cite web|title=Reliable Home Phone Service from Cincinnati Bell|publisher=Cincinnati Bell|access-date=April 8, 2014|url=http://www.cincinnatibell.com/home-phone/}}</ref>]]

Cincinnati Bell and [[Southern New England Telephone]] (SNET) were the only two companies in the old [[Bell System]] in which [[AT&T Corporation]] only owned minority stakes. Therefore, neither was considered a [[Regional Bell Operating Company]] (RBOC) for regulatory purposes, restrictions placed on the Baby Bells did not apply to these two companies, and AT&T was not obligated to dispose of their ownership stakes in the companies. AT&T owned 32.6% of Cincinnati Bell until 1984, at which point the shares AT&T owned were placed into a trust and then sold.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.beatriceco.com/bti/porticus/bell/att/1983/att_1983.htm|title=1983 Annual Report American Telephone & Telegraph Company- AT&T|access-date=2012-04-27|archive-date=2016-03-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305171751/http://www.beatriceco.com/bti/porticus/bell/att/1983/att_1983.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Cincinnati Bell was, from 2006 to 2022, the only former Bell System company that continued to publicly do business under the "Bell" name.<ref name="Enquirer Pichler">{{cite news|title=IN-DEPTH: A new calling for the last of the Bells|first=Josh|last=Pichler|work=[[The Cincinnati Enquirer]]|date=August 5, 2013|access-date=April 8, 2014|url=http://www.cincinnati.com/article/20130804/BIZ01/308040014/|quote=Bell is the last of its breed, the only surviving regional Bell company still bearing the monicker of the telephone’s inventor.}}</ref><ref name="enq-alta" /> In July 2006, Cincinnati Bell removed the final iteration of the Bell logo—designed in 1969 by [[Saul Bass]]—from most of its corporate branding, leaving only a stylized wordmark. However, the company continued to use the Bell logo in promotional materials for residential landline and long-distance service<ref>{{cite web|title=Long Distance Calling|url=http://www.cincinnatibell.com/home-phone/long-distance/|publisher=Cincinnati Bell|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140413213245/http://www.cincinnatibell.com/home-phone/long-distance/|archive-date=April 13, 2014|access-date=April 8, 2014}}</ref> until it adopted a new logo in 2016.

==Service area==
Cincinnati Bell's conventional telecommunications services are concentrated in markets where its subsidiaries have historically enjoyed [[incumbent local exchange carrier]] (ILEC) status. Since the 1870s, Cincinnati Bell Telephone has been the ILEC within a radius of approximately {{convert|25|mi}} from downtown [[Cincinnati]]. {{As of|2019}}, the three-state territory consists of:

* [[Hamilton County, Ohio|Hamilton County]], most of [[Clermont County, Ohio|Clermont]] and [[Butler County, Ohio|Butler]] counties, and a small part of [[Warren County, Ohio|Warren County]] in Ohio<ref>{{cite web|title=Telephone Service Areas|publisher=[[Public Utilities Commission of Ohio]]|date=February 14, 2018|access-date=October 23, 2019|url=https://www.puco.ohio.gov/emplibrary/files/Util/GIS/Telephone_Maps/Ohio_ILECs_and_Exchanges_Size_A.pdf}}</ref>
* [[Boone County, Kentucky|Boone]], [[Campbell County, Kentucky|Campbell]], [[Gallatin County, Kentucky|Gallatin]], [[Grant County, Kentucky|Grant]], [[Kenton County, Kentucky|Kenton]], and [[Pendleton County, Kentucky|Pendleton]] counties in Kentucky <ref>{{cite web|title=Kentucky Exchange Boundaries|publisher=[[Kentucky Public Service Commission]]|date=August 30, 2007|access-date=October 23, 2019|url=https://psc.ky.gov/agencies/psc/images/lecbyexchange.pdf}}</ref>
* [[West Harrison, Indiana]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Southern Indiana|first=James|last=Bellaire|work=Telecom Indiana|date=February 13, 2017|access-date=October 3, 2019|url=http://telecomindiana.com/southernindiana.html}}</ref>

Beyond its ILEC territory, Cincinnati Bell Telephone additionally serves [[Mason, Ohio|Mason]], [[Lebanon, Ohio|Lebanon]], and the [[Dayton metropolitan area]] through its subsidiary Cincinnati Bell Extended Territories. [[Hawaiian Telcom]], which Cincinnati Bell acquired in 2018, is the ILEC for the entire state of [[Hawaii]].<ref name="10-K 2019" />

OnX provides enterprise IT solutions in the United States, Canada, and United Kingdom.<ref name="10-K 2019" />

==Services==
Cincinnati Bell has historically focused on traditional landline service, but in recent decades it has expanded into adjacent communications and entertainment services. {{As of|2017}}, legacy voice service makes up only a quarter of the company's revenue.<ref>{{cite news|title=Incoming Cincinnati Bell CEO: What's in a name?|first=Alexander|last=Coolidge|work=The Cincinnati Enquirer |date=March 30, 2017|access-date=October 23, 2019|url=https://www.cincinnati.com/story/money/2017/03/30/incoming-cincinnati-bell-ceo-whats-name/99731058/}}</ref>

===Landline service===
Cincinnati Bell provides [[landline]] [[Public switched telephone network|PSTN]] local and [[long-distance calling]]. In recent years,{{when|date=December 2024}} the company has seen subscriptions to these traditional services decline due to competition from cable and wireless providers.<ref name="FT Buckley">{{cite news|title=Cincinnati Bell's new broadband and energy ventures are all about survival|first=Sean|last=Buckley|work=FierceTelecom|publisher=FierceMarkets|date=2011-07-07|access-date=2011-09-12|url=http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/cincinnati-bells-new-broadband-and-energy-ventures-are-all-about-survival/2011-07-07}}</ref>{{needs update inline|date=December 2024}}

===Internet access===

Cincinnati Bell offers Internet access to customers in its service area. Its primary competitor for broadband Internet access is [[Charter Communications|Charter]] [[Spectrum Internet]].

===Fiber optics===
In late 2009, Cincinnati Bell started offering a [[fiber-optic communication]]s (Internet, telephone, and [[IPTV]]) service called '''Fioptics''', similar to the [[AT&T U-verse|U-verse]] service offered by [[AT&T]] and the [[Verizon FiOS|FiOS]] service offered by [[Verizon Communications]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Arnason |first=Bernie |date=September 29, 2009 |title=Cincinnati Bell Makes GPON Moves, Follows FiOS Lead |url=http://www.telecompetitor.com/cincinnati-bell-makes-gpon-moves-follows-fios-lead/ |access-date=November 10, 2009}}</ref> Cincinnati Bell's '''Fioptics ''' provides Internet at speeds from 5&nbsp;Mbit/s up to 2&nbsp;Gbit/s to over 500,000 homes in the [[Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky metropolitan area|Cincinnati metropolitan area]]. The availability is limited to areas wired for Fioptics, and other Fioptics services are not required. In areas now covered by Fioptics, Cincinnati Bell no longer offers ADSL-only speeds greater than 5&nbsp;Mbit/s.

{{As of|2019}}, Cincinnati Bell's fiber optic network extends nearly {{convert|16500|mi||adj=pre|route}}.

===Electricity===
In 2011, Cincinnati Bell became the first telecommunications company to also provide retail energy service.<ref name="BW energy">{{cite press release|title=Cincinnati Bell Energy Launches Green Energy Service|publisher=Cincinnati Bell Energy ([[Business Wire]])|date=2011-07-21|access-date=2011-09-12|url=http://www.marketwatch.com/story/cincinnati-bell-energy-launches-green-energy-service-2011-06-21}}</ref> Through a partnership with [[Viridian Energy]], Cincinnati Bell Energy competes with several other alternative [[Electricity retailing|electricity retailers]] for the power generation portion of customers' electricity bills.<ref name="FT Buckley" /> The subsidiary advertises that its service is entirely sourced from [[National Wind]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Energy|publisher=Cincinnati Bell|access-date=October 23, 2019|url=https://www.cincinnatibell.com/shop-cincinnati-bell/energy/electric|archive-date=April 7, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220407233400/https://www.cincinnatibell.com/shop-cincinnati-bell/energy/electric|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Former services==
===Wireless telephony===
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Cincinnati Bell Wireless (logo until 2006).jpg|thumb|right|Former Cincinnati Bell Wireless logo used until mid-2006]] -->
From 1998 until 2015, '''Cincinnati Bell Wireless''' (CBW) offered [[GSM]] [[Mobile phone|wireless service]] in southeastern [[Indiana]], southwestern [[Ohio]], and northwestern [[Kentucky]]. It was sold at [[Best Buy]], [[Circuit City]] (until 2009), [[Office Depot]], and participating [[Kroger]] locations. It offered [[Evolved HSPA|HSPA+]]<ref>{{cite news|title=Cincinnati Bell joins 4G parade with HSPA+ rollout|first=Phil|last=Goldstein|work=FierceWireless|date=July 6, 2011|access-date=December 27, 2014|url=http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/cincinnati-bell-joins-4g-parade-hspa-rollout/2011-07-06}}</ref> service in most of [[Hamilton County, Ohio]], and parts of surrounding counties; [[Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution|EDGE]]<ref>{{cite web|title=Cincinnati Bell Wireless Network Policies|publisher=Cincinnati Bell Wireless|date=August 18, 2014|access-date=December 27, 2014|url=http://www.cincinnatibell.com/customer_support/consumer_information/network_management/wireless.pdf?v4|format=PDF|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402130815/http://www.cincinnatibell.com/customer_support/consumer_information/network_management/wireless.pdf?v4|archive-date=April 2, 2015|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> service in [[Dayton, Ohio|Dayton]] and [[Oxford, Ohio|Oxford]]; and [[GSM]] service elsewhere. The local coverage area extended north to [[Celina, Ohio|Celina]] and [[Urbana, Ohio|Urbana]], east to [[Hillsboro, Ohio|Hillsboro]], south to [[Corinth, Kentucky|Corinth]] and [[Warsaw, Kentucky|Warsaw]], and west to [[Batesville, Indiana|Batesville]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Cincinnati Bell Wireless Coverage|publisher=Cincinnati Bell|access-date=December 27, 2014|url=http://www.cincinnatibell.com/wireless/coverage/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103114056/http://www.cincinnatibell.com/wireless/coverage|archive-date=January 3, 2015|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> Cincinnati Bell's [[prepaid mobile phone]] products were sold under the same '''i-wireless''' brand as an [[i-wireless|unrelated service]] by locally based [[Kroger]].<ref>{{cite web|title=i-wireless|publisher=Cincinnati Bell Wireless|access-date=December 27, 2014|url=http://www.i-ontheweb.com/|archive-date=December 22, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141222233406/http://i-ontheweb.com/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Cincinnati Bell made its first foray into wireless telephony around 1986, when it acquired a 45% stake in [[Ameritech Cellular]]. On February 2, 1998, Cincinnati Bell acquired 80% of [[AT&T Wireless Services]]'s new Cincinnati-Dayton [[Personal Communications Service|PCS]] network for over $100 million. Cincinnati Bell's subsidiary Cincinnati Bell Wireless was responsible for marketing and sales, while AT&T Wireless handled technical operations for the joint venture. Wireless service began by June in Cincinnati and by September in Dayton, eventually covering a 21-county area.<ref name="Enquirer Boyer adding">{{cite news|title=Cincinnati Bell adding wireless|first=Mike|last=Boyer|work=The Cincinnati Enquirer |date=February 4, 1998|access-date=March 29, 2015|url=http://www.enquirer.com/editions/1998/02/04/bus_wireless04.html|quote=Cincinnati Bell made its long-awaited entry into wireless communications Tuesday, acquiring 80 percent of AT&T Wireless Services' new Cincinnati-Dayton network for more than $100 million. ... Under the agreement, Cincinnati Bell Wireless will handle the business side of the venture, and AT&T Wireless will concentrate on the technical side of the digital Personal Communications Service (PCS) network. AT&T Wireless is building the network over 21 counties, stretching from Springfield south to the Interstate 75-71 split in Northern Kentucky and from Clermont County on the east to Lawrenceburg on the west.}}</ref><ref name="Enquirer Boyer">{{cite news|title=Bell will open 3 stores|first=Mike|last=Boyer|work=The Cincinnati Enquirer |date=October 21, 1997|access-date=March 29, 2015|url=http://www.enquirer.com/editions/1997/10/21/bus_bell.html}}</ref><ref name="NYT att partnership">{{cite news|title=Company News; AT&T and Cincinnati Bell agree on wireless partnership|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=February 4, 1998|access-date=March 29, 2015|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/04/business/company-news-at-t-and-cincinnati-bell-agree-on-wireless-partnership.html}}</ref> When AT&T Wireless was purchased by Cingular, now known as [[AT&T Mobility]], control of its 20% stake also passed to Cingular. On February 17, 2006, Cincinnati Bell took full control of CBW by purchasing Cingular's stake for $83 million. As a part of the deal, Cincinnati Bell and Cingular secured lower [[roaming]] charges on each other's respective GSM networks.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://cingular.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=press_releases&item=442|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061018203238/http://cingular.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=press_releases&item=442|url-status=dead|title=AT&T Corporate Information - News Room<!-- Bot generated title -->|archive-date=October 18, 2006}}</ref>

On April 7, 2014, Cincinnati Bell announced plans to sell its wireless spectrum and other assets to [[Verizon Wireless]], as part of a planned emphasis on enterprise and entertainment services such as Fioptics.<ref name="Enquirer Pichler" /><ref>{{cite news|title=Cincinnati Bell to Sell Wireless Spectrum Licenses to Verizon Wireless|first=Erin|last=McCarthy|work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|date=April 7, 2014|access-date=April 8, 2014|url=https://www.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303456104579487120660710530?mg=reno64-wsj&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB10001424052702303456104579487120660710530.html}}</ref> Cincinnati Bell Wireless ended service on February 28, 2015, and the company's retail locations began selling Verizon products.<ref>{{cite web|title=Cincinnati Bell Wireless: We have some exciting news!|publisher=Cincinnati Bell|year=2014|access-date=December 27, 2014|url=http://www.cincinnatibell.com/cbw/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141228000423/http://www.cincinnatibell.com/cbw/|archive-date=December 28, 2014|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

===Directories===
Like other [[Bell System]]–affiliated companies, Cincinnati Bell published a series of local [[Telephone directory|telephone directories]], beginning in 1879.<ref name="Enquirer Suess" /> In 2002, it spun off these operations as [[CBD Media]].

==Retail presence==
Cincinnati Bell originally operated a chain of Cincinnati Bell Phone Center locations until 1992, when it sold the retail chain to [[AT&T]].<ref name="WSJ phone centers">{{cite news|title=Index|work=[[The Wall Street Journal]]|year=1992|volume=2|page=1462|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P5oyAQAAIAAJ|via=Google Books|quote=Cincinnati Bell Inc. agreed to sell its telephone equipment leasing and Phone Center Store business to AT&T Co. AT&T will provide telephone lease service to Cincinnati Bell's residential lease customers and operate AT&T Phone Centers in the Cincinnati and northern Kentucky region beginning Feb 1, 1993.}}</ref> It reentered the retail space in 1998 with three Store@Cincinnati Bell retail locations.<ref name="Enquirer Boyer" /><ref name="Enquirer Boyer adding" /> {{As of|2018}}, the company operates nine Cincinnati Bell Stores.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cincinnatibell.com/customer_support/locations/?zipcode=45202&miles=100000&store=y|title=Cincinnati Bell Store & Payment Locations|publisher=Cincinnati Bell|access-date=August 28, 2018}}</ref>

==Downtown Cincinnati presence==

Cincinnati Bell's headquarters are located in the Atrium Two building on 4th Street in [[Downtown Cincinnati]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Cincinnati Bell to bring 600 more employees downtown|first=Josh|last=Pichler|work=[[The Cincinnati Enquirer]] |date=June 9, 2014|access-date=October 23, 2019|url=https://www.cincinnati.com/story/money/josh-pichler/2014/06/09/cincinnati-bell/10232369/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/news/2015/11/02/cool-places-look-inside-cincinnati-bells-new-hq.html | title=Cool Places: Look inside Cincinnati Bell's new HQ | first=Andy | last=Brownfield | work=[[American City Business Journals]] | date=November 2, 2015}}</ref>

The company's former headquarters and [[telephone exchange]] on 7th Street is known as the [[Cincinnati and Suburban Telephone Company Building]]. It was added to the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1995. Next door is a [[data center]] operated by [[CyrusOne]], a former Cincinnati Bell subsidiary.<ref>{{cite web|title=Cincinnati – 7th Street Data Center|publisher=CyrusOne|access-date=October 23, 2019|url=https://cyrusone.com/locations/ohio/7th-street/|archive-date=September 7, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220907140707/https://cyrusone.com/locations/ohio/7th-street/|url-status=dead}}</ref> It originally opened in 1975 as Cincinnati Bell's central Switching Center.<ref name="CincyMag salute" />

Cincinnati Bell owns the naming rights to the [[Cincinnati Bell Connector]] streetcar line that traverses the downtown area. In August 2016, Cincinnati Bell paid ${{format price|3400000}} to rename the line for 10 years.<ref name="naming-rights-sold">{{cite press release|title=Cincinnati Bell Named Sponsor of the Cincinnati Streetcar|url=http://www.go-metro.com/news/715/58/Cincinnati-Bell-Named-Sponsor-of-the-Cincinnati-Streetcar|website=Go-metro.com|publisher=[[Southwest Ohio Regional Transit Authority|SORTA]]|date=August 18, 2016|access-date=September 10, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160911063055/http://www.go-metro.com/news/715/58/Cincinnati-Bell-Named-Sponsor-of-the-Cincinnati-Streetcar|archive-date=September 11, 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref> From 2007 to 2014 Cincinnati Bell also sponsored the annual [[Cincinnati Bell/WEBN Riverfest]], one of the largest fireworks displays in the Midwest.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Murray|first=Sydney|date=May 27, 2015|title=New sponsor for WEBN Fireworks|language=en|work=The Cincinnati Enquirer|url=https://www.cincinnati.com/story/money/2015/05/27/new-sponsor-webn-fireworks/28012751/|access-date=2019-10-23}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Ohio Bell]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
*{{Official website|https://www.cincinnatibell.com}}
*[https://bellsystemmemorial.com/bellopercomp-cincinnatibell.html Bell Operating Companies (from Bell System Memorial)]

{{Cincinnati Bell}}
{{Bell System}}
{{Macquarie Group}}
{{United States telephone companies}}
{{US mobile phone companies}}
{{Internet service providers of the United States}}
{{CATV USA}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Cincinnati Bell| ]]
[[Category:Bell System]]
[[Category:Internet service providers of the United States]]
[[Category:Broadband]]
[[Category:American companies established in 1873]]
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[[Category:Companies based in Cincinnati]]
[[Category:Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange]]
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[[Category:1873 establishments in Ohio]]
[[Category:2021 mergers and acquisitions]]
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