Centric Telecom Buys PTI Communications.

Does there seem to be a lot of action lately on the communications service provider M&A front, or is it just me? In any case, news that Centric Telecom bought PTI Communications is among the latest things along these lines that have come across my desk.

Centric is a 14-year-old CSP offering cloud-based applications, hosted VoIP, phone systems, and cable solutions. It serves customers in Maryland, Northern Virginia, and Washington, D.C.

PTI Communications is a family-owned and operated VoIP communications solutions provider. It offers ESI and Zultys on-premises based business phone solutions, and does cable installation, in the Washington, D.C., area. And it’s been doing that for more than three decades.

ESI, or Estech Systems, sells cloud services and phone systems. It’s a privately owned, Plano, Texas-based company that was established in 1987. Late last year the company came out with a smartphone application for mobile workers. It’s called ESI ePhoneGO. And it is a replacement for the company’s ESI Ditto mobility application for ESI eCloud PBX users. ESI ePhoneCO enables business users to access their corporate contacts from their smartphones. It allows them to use simplified dialing plans even while on the move. And it provides them the ability to record calls, transfer calls, and work from any location as if they were at their office desks.

Zultys offers business phone, unified communications, and contact center solutions. Users can access these features through desk phones and via a mobile app and have the same functions and experiences through either interface.

As to my earlier point about service provider mergers and acquisitions, GTT Communications Inc. also announced today the acquisition of Accelerated Connections. ACI is a Toronto-based provider of managed networking, VoIP, and collocation services. GTT caters to multinationals with cloud-based service including optical transport, WAN solutions, internet, managed services, and voice and video services. And last month the company announced plans to buy Interoute.

Edited by Mandi Nowitz