Smithville™

Smithville Offers fastest broadband speeds in Indiana

Post date: April 30, 2009

Smithville offering residential customers broadband speeds of 100 Mbps—double the speeds offered by fastest competitor; Company completes first segment of $90 million fiber-to-the-home overbuild for customers.

ELLETTSVILLE, Ind. (April 30, 2009) – Rural communities everywhere have rarely been first to receive new technology upgrades of any kind. Many of Indiana’s rural communities are no different, struggling today to upgrade to a broadband system that can support sustained economic development and a higher quality of life. Smithville, Indiana’s largest privately held telecommunications company, has set out to change that and today announced the completion of the first segment of a $90 million Fiber-To-The-Home (FTTH) overbuild for all of its 30,000 residential customers in the south-central and southern part of the state.

By bringing fiber optic cable directly to each home, customers will receive Internet, voice and TV at the speed of light. This cutting-edge technology will allow Smithville’s customers access to the fastest broadband speeds available anywhere in the U.S., including a mammoth 100 Megabits per second (Mbps) package. Currently, no other internet service provider (ISP) in the state of Indiana offers 100 mbps service for residential customers. In fact, no other ISP in Indiana offer’s more than 50 Mbps.

According to Joe Savage, President of the National Fiber-to-the-Home Council, “Smithville’s investment in a fiber-to-the-home network will pay dividends for their subscribers, not only in improved access to the Internet, but in increased tele-work and home-based business opportunities, as well as increased tele-education and tele-health application usage. We applaud the forward-looking efforts of Smithville to bring true high-speed communications to their customers.”

Called Fiber-to-the-Home, Smithville’s all-new technology platform will give customers the ability to access the Internet, voice, and television and web based television services at a speed much faster than currently available to most residential customers anywhere in the United States—in rural or urban areas. Using light waves to carry digital signals, Smithville’s new FTTH system will transmit data approaching the speed of light—about 186,000 miles per second—with upload and download speeds up to 100 Mbps.

“Smithville’s $90 million investment and commitment to bringing cutting-edge technology to rural Indiana will not only impact their customers directly, but will help to advance the economy of the region as a whole,” said Lt. Governor Becky Skillman. “Smithville’s efforts to bring true high-speed broadband to these communities will help them become more competitive in the 21st Century economy and advance technology in rural Indiana.”

“As technology advances and becomes more integrated into everyday life, the bandwidth available via fiber directly to the home will become essential for all residential customers,” said Smithville President and CEO Darby McCarty. “We’re looking to the future and acting now, as opposed to acting later, and bringing technology to rural Indiana that can’t be found in most large cities.”

Smithville’s new FTTH service will set a new standard of digital communication with the complete rebuild of its existing system. When complete, none of Smithville’s customers will use existing copper or hybrid (combination of copper, fiber or coaxial cable) systems which possess significant limitations and cannot achieve the higher speeds available only with all-fiber systems.

So how fast is Smithville’s new fiber-to-the-home platform? For example: A movie purchased and downloaded on a DSL connection might take as long as two or three hours to complete. The time required to download that same movie might be cut in half with a cable modem. But with Smithville’s fiber-based connection, the same movie could be downloaded in seconds.

Within the next 12 months Smithville will have half of its residential customers using the new fiber-to-the-home service. For more information about Smithville’s 100 Mbps service offering, other products or other information about the company, visit www.smithville.net.

About Smithville - Led by chairman and CEO Darby A. McCarty since 2003, Smithville is one of Indiana’s oldest and largest independent communication companies, with its telephone division founded in 1922. A long-time champion of southern Indiana customers and a proven early adopter of state-of-the-art communication services, Smithville began converting its operations to a digital platform in the 1980s. In 2003, the company created a new commercial division, Smithville Digital, which serves up a fiber-based technology portfolio of physical and electronic services providing high-speed, reliable and secure broadband access and industrial data transport for Hoosier businesses statewide.

Historical contribution to IU Women’s Basketball

Post date: September 24, 2008

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (September 22, 2008) – Smithville, Indiana’s largest privately owned telecommunications company, has made a $250,000 capital contribution to Indiana University Women’s Basketball. The gift was made in support of the IU athletics campaign, For the Glory of Old IU: The Campaign for IU Athletics, to enhance student-athlete welfare at the university.

Darby McCarty, president of Smithville and an avid fan of IU women’s basketball, serves on the Campaign Steering Committee. Smithville, with the Earles and McCarty families, have been donors to the Varsity Club for 40 years and season football and men’s basketball ticket holders for over 30 years.

“Darby McCarty has set the tone for women’s basketball here at Indiana University. With her contribution of $250,000 to Indiana University Athletics Capital Campaign and our Women’s Basketball program, she has become our most generous donor in history,” said IU Women’s Basketball Head Coach Felisha Legette-Jack. “The old cliché is, ‘if you build it, they will come.’ Well, Darby McCarty fully understands our vision and stepped up and said, ‘I will help you build it!’ She has embraced me from the beginning and stands with us as we embark on greatness. I am deeply touched, honored and humbled by her support. She exemplifies what one considers a phenomenal woman.”

The over-arching goal of this campaign is to raise $80 million in private support for critical facility projects as well as student athletes’ scholarships. This campaign is the first comprehensive campaign in Indiana University history.

The Smithville contribution supports a major addition in IU athletics, The Basketball Development Center, which was designed by HOK Sport of Kansas City and is to be completed in August 2009. Once constructed, the facility will be a 67,000 square foot state of the art facility and will serve as the daily headquarters for Indiana men’s and women’s basketball programs. It will feature two regulation-sized practice courts, coaches’ offices, locker rooms, meeting/video rooms, and shared strength-development and training areas. Additionally, it will feature a Legacy Court Lobby that celebrates the championship tradition of Indiana Basketball.

“We are very appreciative that Darby and Smithville have committed to a leadership gift for Indiana women’s basketball in our campaign.” Scott Dolson, Associate Athletic Director for Development and IU Varsity Club Director said. “They are true friends who have been strong and steadfast in their support for decades.”

In recognition of the largest capital gift given in the history of Indiana University Women’s Basketball, IU Athletics will permanently name the Women’s Basketball Conference Room in the Basketball Development Center after Smithville.

“Our continued support and the support from many other dedicated fans of IU athletics will help ensure its stability. Athletics are a core component of Indiana University and its continued history is important to us,” said McCarty. This contribution will help IU athletes reach their goals, fulfill their potential, and continue to create Hoosier legacies.”

About Smithville - Led by chairman and CEO Darby A. McCarty since 2003, Smithville is one of Indiana’s oldest and largest independent communication companies, with its telephone division founded in 1922. A long-time champion of southern Indiana customers and a proven early adopter of state-of-the-art communication services, Smithville began converting its operations to a digital platform in the 1980s. In 2003, the company created a new commercial division, Smithville Digital, which serves up a fiber-based technology portfolio of physical and electronic services providing high-speed, reliable and secure broadband access and industrial data transport for Hoosier businesses statewide.

Smithville to Invest $90 Million for Rural Technology

Post date: April 7, 2008

ELLETTSVILLE, Indiana Rural communities have rarely been first on the list to receive technology upgrades of any kind. Indiana’s rural communities are no different, struggling today to upgrade to a broadband system that can support sustained economic development and a higher quality of life. According to Darby A. McCarty, president and CEO of Smithville, rural residents and businesses in certain areas of Indiana can soon boast about a new development that is not yet widely available, even in urban settings. This region in central, south central and southern Indiana is about to receive data, voice and video at the speed of light through cutting-edge technology that brings fiber-optic broadband directly into the home.

Smithville, Indiana’s oldest and largest privately held telecommunications company will invest $90 million over the next 48 months to build phase one of an entirely new communications platform that will bring real fiber-based broadband to 29,000 customers in 17 counties in the central, south central and southern part of the state, including Hendricks County in the greater Indianapolis area.

“Smithville’s $90 million investment and commitment to bringing cutting-edge technology to rural Indiana will not only impact their customers directly, but help to advance the economy of the region as a whole,” said Lt. Governor Becky Skillman. “Smithville’s efforts to bring true high-speed broadband to these communities will help them become more competitive in the 21st Century economy and advance technology in rural Indiana.”

“As a native of southern Indiana, I know firsthand what this means to the region,” the Lt. Governor continued. “We are proud to have a Hoosier-owned company directly helping Hoosiers in rural areas.”

Called Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH), Smithville’s all-new technology platform will give customers the ability to access the Internet, telecom, and eventually video services at a speed much faster than currently available to most residential customers anywhere—rural, urban, big telecom, or small telecom. Using light waves to carry digital signals, Smithville’s new FTTH system will transmit data approaching the speed of light—about 186,000 miles per second—with upload and download speeds averaging faster than 100 mbps.

“The new Smithville fiber-optic system will bring a whole host of new services to our customers, but as important, it will help Indiana rural business compete on a global scale,” said Ms. McCarty. “From bandwidth-hungry modeling software to large creative art files, the new Smithville fiber system will be able to handle the Hoosier workload from a rural setting.”

Smithville’s new FTTH service will set a new standard of digital communication with the complete rebuild of its existing system. When complete, none of Smithville’s customers will use existing copper or hybrid (copper, fiber or coaxial cable) systems which possess significant limitations and cannot achieve the higher speeds available only with fiber-based systems.

“Bringing fiber-based high-speed connectivity to Hoosiers living and working in rural areas is critical for Indiana’s long-term success,” said James L. Jay, president and CEO of TechPoint, Indiana’s initiative focused on growth of the state’s technology sector.  “This is another positive development for Indiana’s rural technology infrastructure and will most certainly aid economic development. Our collective hats are off to Smithville for continuing to invest in Indiana.”

Smithville will acquire funding for a portion of the $90 million fiber rebuild through a federal loan program from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The Rural Utilities Services (RUS) Division of USDA has provided long-term loans to a number of communications companies upgrading services to rural areas, including major rural areas in the southeast United States.

“The USDA has long had programs in place to advance rural development, but to be effective, they require an innovative and risk-taking company to help execute them,” said Robert White, Indiana state director for the United States Department of Agriculture. “Smithville represents a perfect example of a company bringing much needed state-of-the-art service to rural customers by leveraging USDA financial resources. Smithville’s $90 million investment can bring real economic development and advancement to southern Indiana through their vision.”

So how fast is Smithville’s new fiber-to-the-home platform? For example: A movie purchased and downloaded on a DSL connection might take as long as two or three hours to complete. The time required to download that same movie might be cut in half with a cable modem. But with Smithville’s fiber-based connection, the same movie could be downloaded in seconds.

Smithville plans to roll out a whole new suite of services with its rebuild, including extended data and consumer video packages.

About Smithville - Led by chairman and CEO Darby A. McCarty since 2003, Smithville is one of Indiana’s oldest and largest independent communication companies, with its telephone division founded in 1922. A long-time champion of southern Indiana customers and a proven early adopter of state-of-the-art communication services, Smithville began converting its operations to a digital platform in the 1980s. In 2003, the company created a new commercial division, Smithville Digital, which serves up a fiber-based technology portfolio of physical and electronic services providing high-speed, reliable and secure broadband access and industrial data transport for Hoosier businesses statewide.