TDS Announces Free Broadband Access for New K-12, College Student Households and More For 60 Days
Internet access will be provided to new customers in qualifying programs
TDS Telecommunications LLC (TDS®), announces plans for supporting residential customers during the COVID-19 pandemic. TDS will be offering broadband access to low-income individuals and/or families with children and college students for 60 days. This offer is for new customers in communities where TDS provides service.
Please note this offer will end April 16, 2020. We will honor this offer for any customer that requested service up through April 16, 2020, even if they have yet to be installed.
The intent of the offer was to help households impacted by COVID-19 be able to get internet to help with distance learning. After reviewing many of the distance learning decisions and school end dates for the schools in our serving area, we believe that the majority of customers who need the service for home schooling have already signed up. Seniors and supervisors can continue to honor this on a case by case basis through the end of the month.
Customers that received this 60 day free offer are promo eligible, and should have been provided with the promotional rate at the time of signup. For any customer that was NOT offered the promotional rate, they can call in and will remain eligible for 60 days following the end of their 60 day free offer.
“As a company, our first priority is the health and well-being of our employees, customers and the communities we serve,” says Drew Petersen, senior vice president of Corporate Affairs at TDS. “During this difficult time, we want to ensure those who cannot afford broadband services have the essential access they need.”
To verify eligibility for this offer, residents will be asked to provide documentation from qualifying programs. For more information, please call 1-888-287-8156.
In addition, TDS signed the “Keep America Connected” pledge initiated by Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai last week. TDS is adopting all three tenets of the policy related to voice and broadband customers to a) forego charging late payment penalties for customers impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, to b) suspend disconnects for customers due to the disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic who fail to pay their bills, and to c) open Wi-Fi hot spots where we maintain them for 60 days.
“We are proud to be associated with this important communications service continuity program and commend the FCC for their proactive attention to public safety during this most difficult time,” says Petersen.
