Frontier receives “Economic Leadership Award” for broadband initiative with Hamilton County that fosters job growth, enhanced quality of life;
and “Most Innovative Broadband Project Award” for creativity in helping the Town of Thurman “get connected” with white space broadband
ALBANY, N.Y.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Frontier Communications (NYSE:FTR, news, filings) was honored last night at the 2015 New York State Broadband Summit and Awards Ceremony in Albany. Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced Frontier among the winners of the New York State Broadband Champion Awards that recognized leaders whose efforts expand broadband access across the state.
Frontier received two awards: The “Economic Leadership Award” for its broadband initiative with Hamilton County, bestowed for the successful implementation of an innovative, economically promising project to enhance the county’s social and economic fabric and quality of life; and the “Most Innovative Broadband Project Award” for its creativity in helping the Town of Thurman connect to the Internet via white space technology.
“We are thrilled to be recognized for our commitment to making broadband available even in the most rural areas,” said Ken Arndt, East RegionPresident, Frontier Communications. “Both initiatives – in Hamilton County and the Town of Thurman – are great examples of public/private partnerships bringing together expertise, resources and leadership focused on the betterment of local communities. This is true collaboration that delivers outstanding benefits for everyone involved, especially local residents and businesses.”
Frontier Communications and Hamilton County partnered — with private capital from Frontier and a Connect NY broadband grant for Hamilton County — to provide enhanced high-speed Internet service to all communities in the county. “As a result of the project, 75 percent of the households in a 1,700 square mile portion of the Adirondack Park now have access to speeds of 12 to 40 Mbps,” noted Kevin Smith, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Frontier’s New York operations.
“For the initial phase of this project, Frontier upgraded the data transport backbone between Gloversville and Eagle Bay, enabling speeds up to 40 Mbps from the enhanced sites. We upgraded Frontier’s main switching sites in the hamlets and then in the second phase, we connected 17 remote switching sites using 430,000 feet of fiber optic cable. We also upgraded these remote sites with IP DSLAM devices (Internet Protocol Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer). This Ethernet-based equipment addresses the increasingly bandwidth-heavy needs of customers, both residential and commercial,” added Smith.
William Farber, Chairman of the Hamilton County Board of Supervisors who secured the New York State broadband grant, said: “This project showcases the benefits of the great partnership between Hamilton County, Frontier Communications, and New York State, working jointly to enable one of the most rural counties in the country, let me say that again, one of the most rural counties in the COUNTRY, to move into the 21st Century and enjoy the social and economic benefits that high-speed Internet delivers. The Governor, through both the REDCs and through his commitment to rural broadband, is making a real difference for Hamilton County’s long term prospects!”
For the Town of Thurman broadband initiative, Frontier’s local team faced a unique challenge. “First, the town of Thurman is not part of Frontier’s service area. Second, Thurman is a very rural area that makes traditional broadband service via DSL cost-prohibitive, and satellite broadband too expensive and unreliable,” said Todd Rulison, General Manager of Frontier’s New York North area.
Local community leaders advocated for white space technology – the unused broadcast frequencies in the wireless spectrum — to provide broadband. Unlike satellite broadband, white space service travels through trees and other terrain obstacles, making it a good choice for Thurman’s rural geography. Evelyn Wood, Town Supervisor, secured a New York State broadband grant to fund the start of the project. Still missing, however, was the way to connect to the Internet.
Knowing Frontier had a fiber optic cable running through one side of Thurman, municipal officials approached Frontier. “We had to get creative. We built and leased to the Town of Thurman a circuit providing dedicated Internet access to which Thurman now connects its white space technology,” said Rulison. “This is a great example of government and private business coming together to find resourceful and innovative solutions to benefit communities. It was also an opportunity for Frontier to enable people outside our service area – non-Frontier customers – to enjoy high-speed broadband and all it offers, from emailing to streaming videos to downloading photos and running e-commerce.”
Commenting on the partnership, Wood said: “Kudos to Frontier Communications for demonstrating their true commitment to helping people ‘get connected.’ The local team didn’t hesitate to join our partnership, despite knowing that they would not be adding to their customer base since they don’t serve our area. They leveraged their expertise, time and talent to deliver a creative solution, and we’re thrilled to have them as part of our Thurmanwhite space broadband team.”
About FRONTIER COMMUNICATIONS
Frontier Communications Corporation (NASDAQ: FTR) offers broadband, voice, video, wireless Internet data access, data security solutions, bundled offerings, specialized bundles for residential customers, small businesses and home offices and advanced communications for medium and large businesses in 28 states. Frontier’s approximately 17,800 employees are based entirely in the United States. More information is available atwww.frontier.com.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150612005505/en/
Frontier Communications
Patricia Amendola, 570-631-6013
Communications Manager
Patricia.Amendola@ftr.com
Source: Frontier Communications
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