SDN expanding in Minnesota

Sioux Falls-based SDN Communications has added new broadband partners in Minnesota.

The expanded Minnesota network brings SDN into Nobles and Watonwan counties.

Christensen Communications Company of Madelia, Minn. and Lismore Cooperative Telephone of Lismore, Minn. agreed to interconnect their networks to six other southern Minnesota telephone companies, an Iowa provider and SDN, which has 45,000 miles of fiber in South Dakota with its 17 owner companies, the independent telephone companies of South Dakota.

“These are strong independent telephone companies providing great services and value in their communities. In joining this network SDN manages, they become something bigger with more reach and they fill coverage gaps for this partner network,” SDN CEO Mark Shlanta said.

The partnership represents a “paradigm shift” for Christensen, said Brent Christensen, vice president and chief operating officer of his family-owned company.

“Our customers used to be just local and didn’t have to connect to areas outside our service territory. Now more of them are multi-location businesses with sites outside our footprint. Connecting into this network gives us the reach to better serve those multi-location businesses, making us more regional.”

Lismore has been aggressive in its fiber-to-the-home builds, board president Darwin Veld said.

“And now connecting our advanced network into this partner network is good for our coop and also our customers and businesses.”

Banks are a good example of an industry that benefits when independent telephone companies interconnect networks, Shlanta added.

“Banks have a home office and branch locations into other territories and need to share electronic data among all locations. When they can do that on one provider network, such as SDN and its partners, it not only becomes more affordable but easier for their IT staff to manage.”

Large carriers, such as AT&T, Verizon and other wireless providers, similarly look for regional network providers who can carry data traffic long distances on one, interconnected network.

The other Minnesota and Iowa based network partners (and headquarters) include:

  1. AcenTek (Houston, MN)
  2. BEVCOMM (Blue Earth, MN)
  3. Communications 1 Network (Kanawha, IA)
  4. Jaguar Communications (Le Sueur, MN)
  5. KMTelecom (Kasson, MN)
  6. Nuvera (New Ulm, MN)
  7. Woodstock Communications (Ruthton, MN)

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SDN expanding in Minnesota

Sioux Falls-based SDN Communications has added new broadband partners in Minnesota.

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