Atlantic Telephone Membership Cooperative

Atlantic Telephone Membership Cooperative (ATMC) is a member-owned nonprofit cooperative organized in 1955 by the citizens of Brunswick County, North Carolina who did not have telephone service and had not been able to secure this service from existing telephone companies.^[1] ATMC is the largest member-owned cooperative in North Carolina and one of the largest in the country.

Through a subsidiary company, Atlantic Telecommunications Multimedia Consolidated, LLC, the company began providing customers in the southeast portions of Columbus County with high speed Internet, digital cable TV and digital telephone service in September 2011.^[2]

Product Offerings

Telephone

The cooperative has been providing telephone service to residents of Brunswick County, North Carolina since 1957. In 1965, an extensive underground construction project was launched to replace aerial telephone lines. Party line service was initially offered and private line service became available in 1969. The cooperative currently offers a wide scope of calling features to complement its telephone service.

Long Distance

ATMC began providing its own long distance service in 2000 and upgraded to offer numerous long distance plans and bundled services to make long distance more affordable for its members. Plans are tailored to meet individual customers’ calling needs and unlimited calling throughout the 910 area code, unlimited calling throughout North and South Carolina and unlimited calling throughout the United States.

Cable TV

ATMC Cable is the brand name of cable TV service provided by ATMC. No other company wanted to invest the expense to provide cable TV to rural Brunswick County, so in 1981, ATMC received FCC approval to construct a cable television system. The cooperative’s first cable TV customer was connected in 1982. Eight channels were available at that time. ATMC Cable currently offers over 200 channels, including digital cable service, premium movie channels, pay-per-view channels, music channels, high-definition channels and Digital Video Recorders (DVR). ATMC made video on demand service available to all digital customers in July 2009.

In January 2011 ATMC completed a project to convert its cable TV system from analog to all-digital technology. This project enabled ATMC to deliver additional video services including HD-VOD, more channels and more HD networks. The company offers over 130 HD channels to the majority of its Cable TV subscribers.

ATMC-TV

In September 2008 ATMC launched a new community channel, ATMC-TV. Available exclusively on ATMC Cable, ATMC-TV features people, places and events from the local Brunswick County community. Programming covers a variety of topics including Chamber of Commerce activities, fitness and exercise, gardening and a variety of relevant topics to the local audience. ATMC-TV also covers West Brunswick High School football games and other special events throughout Brunswick County. ATMC-TV is on ATMC Cable channel 3.

Internet/Broadband

Dial-up Internet service was introduced in 1995, followed by Broadband/DSL in 2000. Broadband is currently available in almost 100% of the cooperative’s service area. Complementary services are available, including Internet Security, Technical Support Services, PC Support Services, Webmail and a community web portal ATMConline.com.^[3] Cable modem service with speeds up to 100Mbit/s was added in March 2014.

Wireless Phone Service

ATMC Wireless is an authorized retailer of AT&T Wireless Services and is part of the nationwide AT&T Wireless Network. In 1996, ATMC, through its subsidiary, Atlantic Seawinds LLC, began offering BellSouth Mobility Services. In 2002, they acquired the rights to provide Cingular (now AT&T) wireless service in Brunswick County. It was re-branded as ATMC Wireless in August 2007. In 2005, ATMC Wireless launched a $10 million wireless project, that would double its number of transmission sites in Brunswick County to provide coverage in areas where coverage had been unavailable. ATMC Wireless began deploying an extensive 3G wireless data network throughout Brunswick County in 2009. 3G service is now operational on 48 of the network's 50 wireless transmission towers giving ATMC Wireless the largest and fastest wireless network in Brunswick County. The company began offering 4G service via HSPA+ technology throughout Brunswick County in June 2011. In February 2014, ATMC sold its wireless assets to AT&T and currently is an Authorized AT&T Retailer with three retail locations in Brunswick County, Leland, Shallotte & Sunset Beach. The sale to the larger provider with greater access to new wireless technologies ensures that subscribers within Brunswick County will continue to have access to the very best wireless services.

Security

ATMC began providing residential and business security services in Brunswick County in September 2007. ATMC currently offers security systems and monitoring to homes and small businesses with localized customer service for Brunswick County and Wilmington, North Carolina. ATMC Security also offers Video Surveillance, Home Automation, and Medical Alert with 2-way voice.

Fiber-To-The-Home

ATMC began deploying fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) technology in early 2005 to new residential neighborhoods. ATMC currently provides FTTH technology to over 40 neighborhoods across Brunswick County. ATMC was also the first company in North Carolina to be certified by the National Fiber-To-The-Home Council.^[4] and serves more residential developments in North Carolina with FTTH technology than any other company in the state.

Columbus County Schools TV

In March 2017, ATMC deployed a new cable access channel through a partnership with Columbus County Schools. Located on channel 98, this channel broadcasts athletic events and school-based video from the campus of Old Dock Elementary School.

References

External links

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