AT&T expanded a long-standing relationship with Frontier Communications that also builds on the carrier’s growing fiber presence outside of its traditional markets to power its 5G network.

The deal calls for AT&T to deploy wireless infrastructure in Frontier’s fiber-focused facilities. This will allow AT&T to add fiber connectivity to its wireless infrastructure in locations where it does not currently own or control its own fiber.

The latest agreement is a first for Frontier, which noted AT&T was the first tenant to rent space within its local offices. It also builds on a previous multi-year deal between the two parties that initiated AT&T’s capability to tap into Frontier’s fiber assets to bolster its 5G and edge deployments.

Frontier’s fiber footprint is across 25 states, which are outside of AT&T’s current 21-state wireline footprint. Frontier acquired most of its fiber footprint through deals with Verizon and to a lesser extent with AT&T.

The Frontier deal also builds on AT&T’s focused fiber push.

The telecom giant late last year started a joint venture with venture capital firm BlackRock that will work through a newly formed Gigapower entity to build and operate commercial fiber services outside of AT&T’s traditional 21-state wireline footprint.

The venture’s initial plans are to deploy a multi-gigabit fiber network to 1.5 million customer locations using a commercial open access platform. This will be in addition to AT&T’s own fiber deployment plans targeted at reaching more than 30 million locations within its 21-state wireline footprint by the end of 2025.

The JV will tap into AT&T’s nationwide 5G wireless service to support sales outside of its traditional wireline footprint. This will allow it to take advantage of AT&T’s already established enterprise arrangements and more quickly get a sales channel up and running.

AT&T’s management had repeatedly stated that fiber is the most cost effective way to meet surging broadband demand.

“When we take a look at the data traffic that we serve over our wireless and our fiber networks, our network itself, we’re calling for a 5x increase in net traffic,” AT&T COO Jeff McElfresh said during a Bank of America investor event last year. “And no matter what your last mile serving architecture is, that’s going to require a lot of fiber. We’ve made that point pretty clear.”

AT&T last year also signed a long-term deal with fiber builder Corning, which is using that deal as the basis to build a new cable manufacturing facility in Gilbert, Arizona. AT&T also formed a “Fiber Optic Training Program” with Corning targeted at training 50,000 people to design, install, and maintain fiber networks.

“This investment is a significant step forward for our country and building world-class broadband networks that will help narrow the nation’s digital divide,” AT&T CEO John Stankey noted in a statement tied to the Corning deal. “This new facility will provide additional optical cable capacity to meet the record demand the industry is seeing for fast, reliable connectivity.”