Business Solutions for Fall 2021

FALL 2021 3 SOLUTIONS DON’T FORGET ABOUT UPLOAD SPEEDS Download speeds often get the most attention when people talk about internet service. While important, they aren’t the only metric to consider when determining which plan would be best for your business. Robust upload speeds are also required to support activities like these: Collaboration Applications When doing business in the cloud, the data you download and edit needs to be uploaded back to the cloud to be saved and accessed by others. That’s why collaboration applications such as Google Drive and Google Docs, which allow multiple people to work on the same files, need an upload speed fast enough to update files nearly instantaneously. Cloud Backup Most backup solutions offer an off-site, cloud solution. The faster your upload speeds are, the faster your data can be backed up and stored safely and securely. This is particularly key during initial data retrieval processes which may entail uploading huge amounts of data. VoIP Phone Calls and Video Conferencing These services are two-way streets, meaning both download and upload speeds need to be fast. If your speeds are too low, your voice and/or video data could lag and cut out. To learn more about our business internet plans, call Panora Telco at (641) 755-2424 or Guthrie Center Communications at (641) 332-2000. WE UPGRADED BUSINESS INTERNET SPEEDS! T here are times when the news is so good, you just have to shout it from the rooftops. And this is one of those times. Panora Telco and Guthrie Center Communications have upgraded our business internet speeds. This applies to customers served by fiber in Panora, Yale, Lake Panorama, Bayard, and Guthrie Center. In our new Internet + Phone packages, both the download and upload speeds have increased. If you previously subscribed to one of our Business Internet Only packages, your upload speed has gone up and is now as fast as your download speed. These new symmetrical speeds—equal download and upload—will provide your business with a better experience for collaborative applications like Google Docs, cloud backup, and video conferencing. (See the sidebar for more details.) Curtis Thornberry, Technology Development Director, noted that additional speed options are also available. “We want to encourage our business customers to contact us for details on our recently updated broadband plans if they think they might need an even bigger speed boost. We can also prepare a custom quote on an enterprise internet plan for large organizations such as schools. Speeds up to a gigabit, roughly equivalent to 1,000 Mbps, can be ordered.” In addition to the efficiency and productivity benefits that faster internet speeds bring to individual businesses, there’s also a broader impact on entire communities, particularly in terms of economic development. Andrew Randol, General Manager, said, “Panora Telco and Guthrie Center Communi- cations have always viewed economic development as a high priority. For example, our cooperative has purchased commercial and residential properties and prepared them for resale and new construction, worked with the City of Panora on street development, and established a revolving loan fund to encourage the growth of new businesses. Our recent upgrades to Business Internet speeds will also help our local communities move forward on economic development, since super-fast and reliable internet service attracts new businesses to the area and supports the expansion of existing ones.”