KANSAS
CITY, Mo., May 15, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Rural
fiber-optic network solutions leader Conexon has introduced a new
recognition program for electric cooperatives that have reached the
significant milestone of fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network
completion within their service territories.
The Conexon 100 Club honors electric co-ops around
the country that have successfully undertaken the important work to
ensure 100 percent of their members have access to affordable,
reliable broadband service.
The program was created to showcase the work co-ops around the
nation have accomplished to bridge the digital divide and deliver
fiber to the home across even the most rural, hardest-to-reach
areas of their service territories. The efforts and investment of
the co-ops mean the homes and businesses they serve can now realize
the opportunities to thrive with the community-transforming power
of high-speed internet.
A total of 25 Conexon partner electric cooperatives across 10
states have achieved Conexon 100 Club status as of
the end of Q1 2024 and are being inducted this month as the
program's inaugural honorees. Their respective FTTH project
completions may date back as far as 2017.
"Since we began our work, we have adhered to one overarching
principle: Every member of an electric co-op should be afforded
access to world-class fiber-optic service. Some electric co-ops
serve members over thousands of miles of electric distribution
lines, so to build fiber across those thousands of miles can take
years of construction," said Conexon co-CEO Jonathan Chambers. "We want to honor those
co-ops who began and completed that long journey. These are
significant milestones, ones that have gone largely unnoticed by
the broadband industry. We simply want to celebrate these
milestones in some small way by recognizing the hard work and
perseverance of so many electric co-op boards, management, and
personnel."
Conexon's next "class" of inductees, expected to number nearly
20 more co-ops, will be recognized, along with today's inaugural
class, in November 2024 as part of
Co-ops Connect, the company's annual fiber broadband workshop.
These nominees will represent FTTH projects that will finish during
Q2-Q4 2024. Going forward, new honorees achieving on-system project
completion and ensuring broadband access for all members will be
inducted yearly at Co-ops Connect.
"Improving the lives and communities of all members they serve –
regardless of where those members live – is at the heart of what
our electric cooperative partners do, and why we choose to
recognize this achievement of 100 percent broadband access," said
Randy Klindt, Conexon Founding
Partner and co-CEO. "At Conexon, we believe co-op involvement is
the only way to ensure rural communities have access to reliable
and affordable high-speed internet, and we are proud today to
recognize our partners who have gotten that job done for the homes
and businesses within their service territories."
To view the 2024 Conexon 100 Club inductees, please visit
conexon.us/conexon-100-club
About Conexon
Conexon is an industry-leading broadband network design,
construction and operations firm working with electric
cooperatives, communities and other entities to deploy fiber to the
home across rural America. Since its inception a decade ago,
Conexon has collaborated with electric cooperatives across 80
markets to launch and deploy fiber-to-the-home networks in their
territories, with more than 20 projects now reaching 100 percent of
members. The company's internet service provider, Connect, today
delivers multi-gigabit-speed internet across many of those markets.
Through Conexon's work with its partners, nearly 3 million rural
Americans now have access to fiber to the home, with more than 1.1
million connected. The company has designed more than 200,000 miles
of fiber and builds more than 50,000 miles annually. With more than
$2 billion in federal, state, and
local grants and subsidies for FTTH projects, Conexon and its
partners have collectively secured more federal broadband funding
for fiber construction than any other group in the country.
Cindy Parks
913-526-6912
cindy.parks@conexon.us
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/conexon-debuts-100-club-program-to-honor-electric-cooperatives-that-complete-on-system-high-speed-fiber-network-and-ensure-reliable-affordable-broadband-for-members-302146831.html
SOURCE Conexon