David McCourt wins Businessman of the Year at Chambers Ireland Recognition Awards

National Broadband Ireland Chairman is spearheading the largest Public Private Partnership in European telecoms

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Mar 03, 2022, 10:29 ET

NEW YORK, March 3, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- David McCourt, Chairman of National Broadband Ireland, the company responsible for delivering Ireland's National Broadband Plan on behalf of the Government of Ireland, has been recognized as 'Businessman of the Year' at the prestigious Chambers Ireland Recognition Awards.

Chambers Ireland has presented NBI Chairman David McCourt with Businessman of the Year. (PRNewsfoto/Granahan McCourt Capital)

As Ireland's largest business organization with a network of Chambers of Commerce in every major town and region in the country, Chambers Ireland praised Irish-American McCourt for his outstanding contribution to the Irish telecoms sector. As the principal investor and Chairman of National Broadband Ireland (NBI), McCourt is taking on what many consider to be the most ambitious infrastructure project in Europe, spanning 96% of Ireland's land mass.

Described by The Economist as possessing "incredible credentials as a telecoms revolutionary" McCourt has spent his 30-year career at the intersection of public policy, business and society. Having founded the first competitive phone company in America, McCourt invented the triple play that is voice, video and data – today considered the norm.

Commenting on the award, David McCourt said: "As Chairman of NBI, I get to stand on the shoulders of an incredible team. I'm humbled to accept this Chambers Ireland award on behalf of the best team in the world who are working tirelessly to deliver this extremely complex and ambitious project."

Taking on the challenge of the National Broadband Plan, NBI's team is laying enough fibre to go around the world nearly four times to deploy its network to over 1.1 million people across 554,000 homes, farms, schools and businesses.

McCourt commented: "This is about radically changing the broadband landscape across the country to ensure that every man, woman and child has access to high-speed broadband, no matter where they live or work. It's an incredible feat and it's going to be transformational for Ireland. This will become the blueprint for other nations around the world as we move towards a gigabit economy."

In less than two years, NBI has put over 1,200 people to work on the rollout of the National Broadband Plan – either directly with NBI or through its network of specialist contractors. This will rise to approximately 1800 at the peak of the rollout.

About David McCourt
David McCourt is the Chairman of National Broadband Ireland delivering Ireland's National Broadband Plan. He is also the Chairman and CEO of Granahan McCourt Capital, the worldwide investors in technology, media and telecommunications.

Recognized as one of the world's most successful entrepreneurs, McCourt is also an Emmy Award-winning television producer and is the author of the bestselling book Total Rethink. He is the inaugural economist in residence at USCs Annenberg school.

Visit:
www.nbi.ie
www.granahanmccourt.com
www.davidmccourt.com

Follow David McCourt:
Twitter: @dcmccourt
LinkedIn: David McCourt
Instagram: @dcmccourt

Media:
Contact Tom Webb at [email protected], +44 (0)203 633 5552

SOURCE Granahan McCourt Capital