NOVEMBER 2022
CEO’S MESSAGE There is a lot going on in North Dakota! From BitZero’s announcement to repurpose the Nekoma nuclear missile site to the Grand Farms groundbreaking near Casselton, not to mention North Dakota is rolling out the nation’s first autonomous beyond visual line of site UAV (unmanned aviation vehicle) network to control drones! DCN is actively involved in all these projects in various ways, and I’m excited for our state’s future as a national technology leader. I’m also grateful for the opportunity to serve a second term on the FCC Precision Ag Task Force. The Task Force is chartered by Congress to provide advice and recommendations to the FCC and the U.S. Department of Agriculture on how to assess and advance deployment of broadband internet service on unserved and underserved agricultural land and promote precision agriculture for both cropping and husbandry. It’s been humbling and inspiring to serve with so many thought leaders from the ag tech industry. I’ve been equally impressed with the ag producers that have participated in the Task Force’s strategy discussions. These producers are embracing technology and challenging broadband providers to enable every acre with secure, reliable, and affordable connectivity options so they can make real-time decisions to increase yields and overall profitability. North Dakota continues to lead the country in fiber deployment to every farm, home, and business in the state. At last check, just over 95 percent of residents have access to a fiber connection. The investment DCN’s Owner companies have made in fiber optic infrastructure has positioned our state to be continued on pg. 2
DCN & OWNERS CONTINUE TO EXPAND SERVICE AND HELP GROW NORTH DAKOTA Can you imagine your life today without internet? Not just at work, but at home too. A recent survey by international market research firm Parks Associates found that in the U.S., internet households own an average of 16 connected devices, up from 13 in 2021. Have you counted the number of connected devices in your household? There are computers, wireless printers, and cell phones for work; and the family enjoys smart TVs and watches, gaming console, and a security system. And the list goes on. Like it or not, connectivity has become essential for work, home, and school – a.k.a. daily life. In North Dakota, we tend to take our connectivity for granted. After all, according to North Dakota Information Technology, 95.4 percent of residents have access to broadband that is 100MB or greater. How is it that is a state with fewer than 10 residents per square mile is so well connected? It’s largely thanks to the Owners of DCN, North Dakota’s 13 independent broadband companies. As the internet was emerging in the 1990s, these companies saw that their futures were going to include much more than telephone service, and they formed DCN to connect businesses across the state and beyond. While some are touting they’re in the process of upgrading to fiber, DCN and its Owners already have 65,000 miles of fiber serving customers. What does that mean? Placed end-to-end, our fiber would go around the earth 2.6 times. More importantly, all those miles are reaching North Dakota homes and businesses in 379 communities – from Grenora to Fairmount, Marmarth to Pembina – with gigabit speed to literally every corner of the state. And we continue to invest around $100 million a year in that fiber infrastructure. This fiber optic network map illustrates the vast reach of DCN and its Owners. For a closer look, visit dakotacarrier.com/ dcn-interactive-fiber-map/.
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