Stephen E. Coran to Discuss Build Bottlenecks and M&A Strategy at Broadband Nation Expo

Member Stephen E. Coran will share regulatory and legal insights on the challenges facing broadband builders and investors in two panel sessions at the 2026 Broadband Nation Expo, taking place November 18 to November 20 at the Hilton Riverside in New Orleans.

Steve will join the VIP-only panel, “Bracing for Bottlenecks: When All the Builds Hit the Same Shot Clock,” on Wednesday, November 18, from 9:00 – 9:40 am CT. Panelists will discuss what happens when BEAD projects, AI infrastructure, and private builds all move on the same timelines, intensifying strain on labor, permitting, and equipment. Steve will be discussing how lawmakers are planning to alleviate delays to expedite broadband deployment.

The conversation will also cover how dark fiber and transport needs compete with last-mile deployment, how overbuilding and construction fatigue add to execution risk, and what it takes to operate effectively when everything happens at once.

He will moderate the lightning talk, “Build, Buy or Be Bought? How Hybrid Network Strategy Reshapes M&A Decisions,” on Thursday, November 19, from 2:40 – 3:00 pm CT. The session will explore how mid-sized operators facing scale pressure and market saturation decide whether to build, buy, or partner, and when growth calls for government funding and consolidation.

The discussion will examine how heavy capital requirements, competition from fixed wireless and cable, and the economics of the BEAD era shape those choices. Speakers will also look at shared infrastructure, colocation, and co-branding as lower-risk ways to expand footprint and capacity without full integration, including reduced capital spending and faster deployment, along with the tradeoffs in control, differentiation, and performance.

Learn more and register for the Broadband Nation Expo here.

Steve Coran chairs Lerman Senter’s Broadband, Spectrum, and Communications Infrastructure practice group, representing broadband providers, private equity firms, and equipment and technology companies on policy, transactional, compliance, and licensing matters. He also represents a trade association before the FCC, Congress, and other federal agencies on spectrum policy, broadband funding programs, Internet regulation, and the Universal Service Fund.

Broadband Nation Expo draws more than 1,000 attendees, including over 200 communications and internet service providers, for panels and technical talks led by industry leaders.