MVTV Wireless celebrates its 20th anniversary Technology, and how people use it every day, has changed considerably in the past 20 years But since beginning service as a customer-ownnd cooperative in 1999. MVTV Wireless has not only kept up with the changing technology but has strived to stay ahead of it. MVTV Sales and Market Develop ment Representative Julie Foote sald that broadband internet access is the next frontier for many people in rural areas "Broadband internet access today is what electricity was in the early 1900s," Foote said. "Getting reliable broadband access is, in some eases, as challenging as it was to bring elec tricity to rural areas years ago. But by reinvesting into the technol- ogy of today, MVTV has been able to to expand its footprint, cover ing almost 30,000 square miles and reaching into 26 counties in Southwest Min nesota. MVTV is beginning to further expand its coverage into portions of Northwest lowa and Eastern South Dakota as well. in a restaurant with the same people providing the service on their wire less internet. Through surveying the region MVTV tries to pinpoint pockets within its coverage area that have been previously unserved or under served when it comes to broadband internet access. Then, MVTV tries to identify how best to address those areas that have lacked broadband access. We focus on good partnerships with local farmers with large grain lags or elevators within the small towns to serve as signal hubs." Foote said. A perfect example of this is the Odin elevator It's a privately owned structure. There was a population base there that we hadn't been able to serve, that needed better internet options. We identified a win win solution with the owners of the Odin elevator, where being able to house an access point would benefit the eleva- tor, the town and MVTV. That kind of cooperation allowed MVTV to be able to bring a better internet option to a community in need. A good example of us being able to put an access point on a private grain lag would be in rural Northrop which allows us to provide better coverage to that area. In celebration of its 30th anniver sary MVTV has rolled out a program that hopes to both expand its services and give back to its loyal customers "Asa cooperative, we're tried to pinpoint low-coverage areas, to better be able to provide broadband access to those areas," Foote said. "That's why, as of July 1, we implemented a Refer a Friend program. Exist ing customers are now able to refer their neighbors to us. If we are able to install and provide service to their neighbor or friend, the existing customer gets a $25 eredit on their account There's no limit to the number of people a customer can refer. For every referral we can provide service to, existing eustomers can receive a $25 credit to their account. We've always recognized that the majority of our new customers come from word of mouth, so the Refer a Friend program Julie Foote MVTV Wireless rep for Customer Service/Market Development MVTV is based in Granite Falls, which is where their customer service, network operations, billing and scheduling are is a way of giving back to our exist ing customers in celebration of our located grow "In 2017, we did our major back haul upgrade," Foote said. "We're testing the newest technologies avail able in several parts of our territory We want to make sure that technol ogy works for our customers in their environment, and we're constantly working toward being able to provide reliable internet access to more of Southwest Minnesota "As a rural-based member-owned cooperative, we're making use of every type of technology to be able to serve as many customers as possible in rural areas. That upgrade allowed MVTV 30th anniversary We want to thank our customers for spreading the word that MVTV is able to provide broad- band access in many hard to reach areas And MVTV prides itself on cus tomer service and communication with its customers. When you call our office in Gran- ite Falls, you will reach a person who is able to address your needs," Foote said. We also have a constant avenue of communication with our custom- ers through Twitter Google and Facebook" However, MVTV has a network of technicians spread throughout its coverage area. Our technicians serve the commu nities they live in," Foote said, "They work out of their homes. That allows us to provide service to our custom ers in a more timely manner. If a customer has a technical issue that is affecting their service, they can con- tact our main office and a technician will be dispatched right away and they can arrive in a timely manner When the technicians are local, it's someone the customers know They could be sitting in church or Faster Speeds at Lower Prices! Fast Local Support NOW SERVING Rural Northrup and in-town Odin! No Contracts Truly Unlimited Data Residential Speeds up to 50M MVTV Ask about our NEW Refer-A-Friend program! 320-564-4807 wireles s internet provider Call Us Today To Get Started! www.mvtvwireless.com MVTV Wireless celebrates its 20th anniversary Technology, and how people use it every day, has changed considerably in the past 20 years But since beginning service as a customer-ownnd cooperative in 1999. MVTV Wireless has not only kept up with the changing technology but has strived to stay ahead of it. MVTV Sales and Market Develop ment Representative Julie Foote sald that broadband internet access is the next frontier for many people in rural areas "Broadband internet access today is what electricity was in the early 1900s," Foote said. "Getting reliable broadband access is, in some eases, as challenging as it was to bring elec tricity to rural areas years ago. But by reinvesting into the technol- ogy of today, MVTV has been able to to expand its footprint, cover ing almost 30,000 square miles and reaching into 26 counties in Southwest Min nesota. MVTV is beginning to further expand its coverage into portions of Northwest lowa and Eastern South Dakota as well. in a restaurant with the same people providing the service on their wire less internet. Through surveying the region MVTV tries to pinpoint pockets within its coverage area that have been previously unserved or under served when it comes to broadband internet access. Then, MVTV tries to identify how best to address those areas that have lacked broadband access. We focus on good partnerships with local farmers with large grain lags or elevators within the small towns to serve as signal hubs." Foote said. A perfect example of this is the Odin elevator It's a privately owned structure. There was a population base there that we hadn't been able to serve, that needed better internet options. We identified a win win solution with the owners of the Odin elevator, where being able to house an access point would benefit the eleva- tor, the town and MVTV. That kind of cooperation allowed MVTV to be able to bring a better internet option to a community in need. A good example of us being able to put an access point on a private grain lag would be in rural Northrop which allows us to provide better coverage to that area. In celebration of its 30th anniver sary MVTV has rolled out a program that hopes to both expand its services and give back to its loyal customers "Asa cooperative, we're tried to pinpoint low-coverage areas, to better be able to provide broadband access to those areas," Foote said. "That's why, as of July 1, we implemented a Refer a Friend program. Exist ing customers are now able to refer their neighbors to us. If we are able to install and provide service to their neighbor or friend, the existing customer gets a $25 eredit on their account There's no limit to the number of people a customer can refer. For every referral we can provide service to, existing eustomers can receive a $25 credit to their account. We've always recognized that the majority of our new customers come from word of mouth, so the Refer a Friend program Julie Foote MVTV Wireless rep for Customer Service/Market Development MVTV is based in Granite Falls, which is where their customer service, network operations, billing and scheduling are is a way of giving back to our exist ing customers in celebration of our located grow "In 2017, we did our major back haul upgrade," Foote said. "We're testing the newest technologies avail able in several parts of our territory We want to make sure that technol ogy works for our customers in their environment, and we're constantly working toward being able to provide reliable internet access to more of Southwest Minnesota "As a rural-based member-owned cooperative, we're making use of every type of technology to be able to serve as many customers as possible in rural areas. That upgrade allowed MVTV 30th anniversary We want to thank our customers for spreading the word that MVTV is able to provide broad- band access in many hard to reach areas And MVTV prides itself on cus tomer service and communication with its customers. When you call our office in Gran- ite Falls, you will reach a person who is able to address your needs," Foote said. We also have a constant avenue of communication with our custom- ers through Twitter Google and Facebook" However, MVTV has a network of technicians spread throughout its coverage area. Our technicians serve the commu nities they live in," Foote said, "They work out of their homes. That allows us to provide service to our custom ers in a more timely manner. If a customer has a technical issue that is affecting their service, they can con- tact our main office and a technician will be dispatched right away and they can arrive in a timely manner When the technicians are local, it's someone the customers know They could be sitting in church or Faster Speeds at Lower Prices! Fast Local Support NOW SERVING Rural Northrup and in-town Odin! No Contracts Truly Unlimited Data Residential Speeds up to 50M MVTV Ask about our NEW Refer-A-Friend program! 320-564-4807 wireles s internet provider Call Us Today To Get Started! www.mvtvwireless.com