TDS to end WiMAX service in Madison

August 1st deadline approaches for WiMAX customers to find new Internet and phone provider

Madison, Wis.  --  On August 1, 2011, TDS Telecommunications Corp. (TDS®) will officially end offering WiMAX service to customers in the Madison market.  Since the first notification in April, customers have been contacted several times through repeated phone calls, letters and even certified letters to initiate a transition to a new provider and to retrieve the equipment in their home or attached to their roof.

“We’ve been successful in reaching the majority of our customers, but there are still a few who have not responded to our requests.   They will likely be calling us on Aug. 1 when their service stops working,” states Drew Petersen, vice president external affairs and communications for TDS. “In the meantime, we are encouraging our WiMAX customers to call 1-877-283-2697 for assistance.”

In 2008, TDS introduced the fixed-wireless broadband product to the Madison market. The company implemented service on eight towers in the city.   A fire at a tower on Prairie Road permanently disrupted service to those customers. Difficulty with vendor support and speed capabilities also hampered the success of the product, from TDS’ perspective.

“In the end the product did not deliver the results we needed.  Getting a clear signal for the line-of- sight product became quite challenging and substantially reduced the number of customers we could serve,” added Petersen.