Recent releases
Sept. 16, 2009
All TDS™ applications for funding posted
For more information contact:
Cindy Tomlinson, Associate Manager – PR
TDS Telecommunications Corp.
608-664-4471 / cindy.tomlinson@tdstelecom.com
MADISON, Wis. — This week, the Broadband USA Web site was updated to include a summary of all applications received by NTIA (National Telecommunications and Information Administration) and RUS (Rurual Utility Service). The site includes all 13 funding requests submitted by TDS Telecommunications Corp. (TDS™) in mid-Aug.
“We’re hopeful we’ll receive full grant funding in each of the areas where we’ve applied,” says Drew Petersen, director of external affairs and communications for TDS. “With these potential partnership funds, we’ll be able to connect more than 8,000 homes and businesses in nine states with fiber-optic, high-speed broadband Internet.”
When the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act first passed, TDS planned to apply for broadband stimulus funds to connect all TDS customers without access to high-speed connections in rural areas. After reviewing the guidelines created by the Rural Utility Service (RUS) in Washington, D.C., however, very few TDS areas qualified for 100 percent grant funding.
The RUS guidelines defined an unserved area as a community located at least 50 miles from a populated area of 20,000 or more. This significantly reduced the number of markets TDS could apply for in the first round of available funding (two additional rounds of funding are anticipated).
TDS did apply for funding in every market where we were eligible for a 100 percent grant and high-speed broadband Internet was not already available. A complete summary of TDS’ applications is available at the Broadband USA Web site.
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TDS Telecommunications Corp. markets communication services to business and residential customers in 30 states through its brands TDS Telecom® and TDS Metrocom®. With 1.1 million access line equivalents in service, TDS Telecommunications Corp. connects customers to phone, broadband, and digital television service in hundreds of rural, suburban, and metropolitan communities. TDS Telecommunications Corp. is the eighth-largest wire line company in the nation; employing approximately 2,730 people. The company is headquartered in Madison, Wis. Visit www.tdstelecom.com and www.tdsbusiness.com for more information.
TDS Telecommunications Corp. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. Telephone and Data Systems™ is a Fortune 500® company that provides wireless, local and long-distance telephone, and broadband services to 7.3 million customers in 36 states, through TDS Telecommunications Corp. and U.S. Cellular®, its 81-percent owned wireless subsidiary. Founded in 1969 and headquartered in Chicago, Telephone and Data Systems employed 12,440 people as of June 30, 2009. For more information, visit www.teldta.com.
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