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Working from home, watching Netflix and sharing photos will soon be easier for Lowndes county residents as Hayneville Telephone Company continues to add homes to its fiber network.

“We are now offering fiber service internet which provides up to 500 megabytes of internet bandwidth as compared to the 256 kilobits of bandwidth which was previously offered with DSL service. With the speeds that fiber now provides, customers can now upload and download photos and files with ease,” Hayneville Telephone Company President and Chief Operating Officer Evelyn Causey said.

Covid-19 has created a greater demand for high speed internet as people and families had to spend more time at home due to business closures and schools switching to virtual teaching.

“The Covid-19 Pandemic has changed the need for high speed internet dramatically,” Evelyn said “The necessity to work from home and to homeschool have increased the need for higher speed internet.”

Hayneville Telephone Company has been offering DSL internet service since the late nineties, but has recently completed several fiber projects in Lowndes County that allow customers in Hayneville, Lowndesboro, and the Black Belt region near County Road 17 access to fiber service internet. Work crews will be dispatched this summer to begin laying the groundwork for fiber internet services in the Gordonville and Mosses communities, with availability scheduled early next year.

“We are currently serving over 500 customers on fiber services in Lowndes County and that number is growing daily. Fiber to the home is the best internet service available. The lowest speed that is offered on fiber is higher than the highest speed that was offered with the DSL service we previously offered,” Cory Causey, project manager for Hayneville Telephone Company said.

Hayneville Telephone Company is in the planning stages of a larger project that will provide fiber services to every citizen in Lowndes County.

“Our goal is to provide fiber services to everyone in Lowndes County within the next five years,” Evelyn said. “We are continuing to invest in the latest and greatest technology. Our platform is tested, hardened, and has been proven. This solution will truly change the capabilities citizens have to use the technology in ways that benefit their lives. This is a long term investment in Lowndes County and as the demand for internet services grows, fiber services allow for that demand to be met.”.

Fiber service internet also provides increased economic development opportunities for Lowndes County and is vital to future economic growth and to provide much needed jobs. The Alabama Department of Labor recently reported Lowndes County’s unemployment rate at 6.5 percent, which only trails Wilcox County’s 8.8 percent as the highest in the state.

Daehan Solutions Alabama, LLC, which provides tier three parts for Hyundai relies heavily on the stability of the internet capabilities that Hayneville Telephone Company is now providing.

“Daehan Solutions has more than one hundred employees, and their jobs are reliant upon us having the availability of fiber internet services to be able continue their mission,” Evelyn said.

According to the residential fiber pricing guide, internet service prices start at $50.95 per month for 50 megabytes of internet bandwidth. The fastest speed available is 500 megabytes for uploads and downloads with a price per month of $124.95.

“There is plenty of bandwidth for citizens to work from home, homeschool, and stream video,” Evelyn said.

For those that qualify, there are programs available that are funded by the federal government that help provide internet service to those in need.

“We are the only approved service provider in our area to provide those services. We are here to meet our customers’ needs but we also want to help them find resources to pay for the internet for their family,” Evelyn said.

If you would like to find out more about fiber service internet or to see if service is available at your address, please call 334-548-2101 or visit www.htcnet.net.