Nemont/ND Spring 2016 Issue

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S P R I N G 2 0 1 6 3
N E M O N T TODAY
NOT SO FAST 3G…
4G I S COM I NG !
Nemont’s teams have been busy installing new 4G sites in NE Montana and NW
North Dakota over the past year or so as part of our long-term goal to expand
the network to match our existing 3G coverage. 4G provides a number of benefits
over the old 3G network including expanded roaming with our Canadian neighbors and
much faster mobile data ’ve delayed our 4G product launch until the summer
of 2016 to allow enough time to continue installing new 4G equipment to expand our
coverage. After all, it’s most important that you can continue to make phone calls from
areas where your 3G phone works today. Expanding the 4G network to match the existing
3G coverage has been one of our primary objectives.This may be why you’ve spotted some
new equipment on our cell towers that hasn’t begun improving your service quite yet.
The 4G network will work like the 3G service, except with a substantial improvement in
your mobile data speeds! The 4G service will also provide excellent voice and data coverage
in areas like Opheim, Medicine Lake, Froid and all along Hwy pride ourselves on
serving our friends and neighbors in these communities that the “big national carriers”
have never served or even heard of. Our five local Nemont sales offices are staffed with
our best and brightest to help answer any of your 4G coverage or feature questions.They’re
backed by our own local engineers and technicians who strive to provide the best possible
service to our customers.
We hope you’ll give our new 4G service a try later this summer. Thanks so much for
entrusting us with your telecommunications service. Nemont takes great pride in building
wireless networks where no other national carrier has gone—this place we’re proud to
call home.
A NOTE FROM
NEMONT’S CEO
Continued from page 2
Why are we so concerned with the FCC’s
actions? The funding Nemont receives
fromtheUSF, combinedwith intercarrier
compensation,comprisesover50percent
of our total revenue. It’s because of these
systems that we’re able to transform our
network to themodern broadband network
needed today and tomorrow.
In 2015, the FCC released its latest order
on USF reform. To comply with the
significant changes to the USF rules
governing small rural carriers such as
Nemont, we’ll need to make a difficult
choice from two options. The first is a
regulatory system where we receive USF
support via a cost model based on a
fictitious network design. One drawback
is that while we’ll know our payments for
the next 10 years, there is no certainty as
to what happens after that 10-year period.
The second option is to stay within the
existingcost-basedrateofreturnregulations.
However, the rate of return that may be
earned on the regulated interstate services
will be reduced from11.25 percent to 9.75
percent over a six-year period and “stand-
alone” broadband (the purchase of
broadband without voice service) will
be supported under a transformed USF
mechanism involving 11 convoluted
steps to come upwith the new supported
amount.
Nemont’s commitment to provide
high-quality, advanced, and competitive
communications services in rural
communities remains steadfast.We’re
working diligently to analyze the potential
impact of each option. One thing we
know for certain is that the future of USF
continues to be uncertain!
Mike Kilgore/CEO
2 0 1 6 PRO J E C T ED 4G COVE RAGE