Broadband service now available to residents of Bois Blanc Island, Mich.

TDS® announces the ARRA broadband stimulus project is partially complete and available in parts of the Island; more residents, businesses will gain access to Internet service in the coming weeks.

TDS Telecom (TDS®) announces part of its American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) stimulus-funded broadband Internet project in Michigan’s U.P. — around Bois Blanc Island — is accessible to some residents.

Construction on the stimulus-funded project is expected to wrap-up this month. Once complete, nearly 300 residents will gain access to a high-speed Internet connection. TDS is laying more than 20 miles of fiber optics cabling and installing several cabinets (which protect the advanced network electronics) throughout its Island Telephone Company to provide high-speed Internet access to more residents and businesses. TDS will alert customers when service is accessible or customers can call 888-225-5837 to sign up.

TDS is receiving funding for 44 projects, including this one in Michigan, from the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Rural Utilities Service (RUS) as part of the ARRA.

Nationwide, more than 95 percent of TDS customers already have access to high-speed Internet service. TDS is intent on providing as many remaining customers with broadband connectivity as possible. According to TDS, federal stimulus funds are helping to close the gap and deliver Internet connectivity to more households. Already, with ARRA grant funding, TDS has expanded high-speed Internet access to nearly 32,000 households across the country.

For background information and updates, visit www.tdstelecom.com/stimulus.

# # #