February 2015 Newsletter

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P.O. Box 2484 Fargo, ND 58108-2484 800.814.3333

Fargo, ND Permit #1159

www.DakotaCarrier.com

(If you would like to be removed from our mailing list, please e-mail Laura Walz at lwalz@dakotacarrier.com)

EMPLOYEE EARNS CERTIFICATION

DCN PARTICIPATES IN LOCAL EVENTS

Just recently, Aparna Subramanian completed the Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) Routing and Switching training program.

DCN was one of the booth sponsors at Fargo’s Chamber Holiday Mixer on December 4, 2014.

This certification validates Aparna’s ability to plan, implement, verify and troubleshoot local and wide-area enterprise networks, which is relevant in providing quality service to DCN’s customers.

Jesse Heck, Director of Operations (right), presents Aparna Subramanian, Ethernet/IP Tech II, with an Education Bonus check from DCN for her achievement.

DCN also sponsored a booth at Bismarck’s Chamber Holiday Mixer on December 9, 2014, where nearly 100 businesses displayed their products and services.

Pictured above are: Kevin Kaeding, Director of Sales, and Jennifer Guthmiller, Account Executive at DCN’s Booth Display.

FEBRUARY 2015 Helping organizations achieve greater value through the advancement of fiber optic telecommunications

CEO’S MESSAGE

DCN OFFERS CLOUD COMPUTING TO SUPPORT OIL INDUSTRY Progress Solutions, LLC, a KLJ Solutions Company, provides contract operations services for oilfield facilities. They operate gas and crude oil pipelines, saltwater disposal wells, terminals and other types of facilities. Part of their service offering is providing control center services where they have the ability to control and monitor these facilities remotely from their control center in Bismarck, North Dakota.

Seth Arndorfer, CEO

Dakota Carrier Network’s virtual machines (VM), with servers located in Bismarck and Fargo, run Progress Solutions, LLC control center’s software. This coupled with DCN’s Ethernet service and fiber rings, provides them with the level of redundancy that these critical services require.

2014 was another exciting year for broadband service providers in North Dakota. Polar Communications and Consolidated Telcom announced Gigabit Internet availability in their respective territories. According to the USDA, the state with the most Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) availability is North Dakota.

Don’t be mistaken, we are not done yet! I expect several more DCN Owner Telecommunications companies offering Gigabit Internet access this year. In 2015, DCN will also be investing millions in fiber infrastructure in Bismarck, Fargo, and Grand Forks.

This edition of DCN’s “Connection” newsletter highlights some of the major 2014 milestones and I expect each edition to be a continuation of the same theme. Onward, 2015!

www.DakotaCarrier.com

KLJ’s Network Operations Center (NOC).

POLAR COMMUNICATIONS ANNOUNCES FIRST GIGABIT CUSTOMER On December 5, 2014, Polar Communications announced Arthur Companies of Arthur, ND as their first customer using gigabit Internet service in North Dakota.

Polar Communications is committed to bringing its customers the very best communication technology available today and for the future. As a result, Arthur Companies, a group of agribusiness companies based in Arthur, N.D. became their first customer to use gigabit Internet service in N.D. Since 2008, Polar Communications has been building its fiber network and is expected to complete their fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) project by the end of 2015, offering gigabit service everywhere.

“The ability to deliver the choice of gigabit speeds to our customers is due to the continued work and “dedication of our employees,” said David Dunning, CEO of Polar Communications. “We are starting in Arthur, but not stopping there. By the end of 2015, all of our customers will have gigabit broadband options from our complete fiber network.”

Brooks Burgum, CEO of Arthur Companies said, “We are excited to not only have the capability of this speed for the efficiency of our business but also to partner with Polar Communications and the community of Arthur to promote this caliber of technology.”

Greg Nelson, Mayor of Arthur said, “Being a part of this deployment of speeds empowers economic growth and development for businesses and residents in Arthur and the surrounding communities.”

Polar Communications is one of the 15 rural ND telco owners of Dakota Carrier Network (DCN), which has built a statewide fiber-optic network to support broadband initiatives throughout N.D. A gigabit celebration was held in mid-December in Arthur.

Pictured above from left to right are: Polar COO, Karl Blake; Polar Director, Cindy Hejl; Arthur Mayor Greg Nelson; NDATC Executive Director, David Crothers; Polar CEO, David Dunning; Arthur Companies President, Rick Burgum; Arthur Companies CEO, Brooks Burgum; Arthur Companies CFO, John Melland; and Arthur Companies Network Administrator, Joe Holder.

CONSOLIDATED TELCOM ANNOUNCES GIGABIT SERVICES On January 27, Consolidated announced gigabit Internet services at their open house in Dickinson, North Dakota.

Dickinson and cooperative areas that are overbuilt with fiber optics will see increased speeds to 1000/1000Mpbs, or 100 times faster than the average speed in the United States today.

Consolidated’s roll out of 1-Gigabit broadband service is available to their customers that have fiber in the communities of Dickinson, Belfield, Amidon, Hettinger and Mott. By the end of 2015, the rest of Consolidated’s exchanges will have gigabit available to them.

General Manager/CEO Paul Schuetzler said, “Consolidated has been the technology leader in Southwestern North Dakota for the past 54 years and once again we are excited to continue that tradition. Our commitment has been to our rural customers as well as those living within our communities. Starting now, we are deploying gigabit technology that will empower economic growth and development for the business and residents of Southwestern North Dakota”, In the last 10 years, Consolidated has invested more than $100 million dollars in Southwestern North Dakota through infrastructure upgrades to deliver the highest quality TV, phone and highspeed Internet service.

Consolidated is one of the 15 rural ND telco owners of Dakota Carrier Network (DCN).

DCN owner companies include: BEK Communications, Consolidated Telcom, Dakota Central Telecom, Dickey Rural Communications, Intercommunity Telephone, Midstate Communications, MLGC, North Dakota Telephone, Northwest Communications, Polar Communications, Red River Telephone, Reservation Telephone, SRT Communications, United Communications, West River Telephone.

Pictured above is Consolidated Telcom General Manager/CEO, Paul Schuetzler, announcing the roll out of 1-Gigabit broadband service to southwest North Dakota customers.