Hope-Prescott Cable TV to get $ 1 M, gigabit upgrade
“A lot of people want to get out of the big cities and move to smaller towns. And they realize now that with high-speed internet, they don’t necessarily have to be in a big city to do their work.” — Walter E. Hussman Jr., CEO of WEHCO Media
HOPE, Ark. — Hope-Prescott Cable TV announced Monday that it is investing $1 million to upgrade network and distribution systems to allow for internet speeds up to around 1000 megabits per second, or one gigabit, by 2023.
Hope-Prescott Cable TV is a WEHCO Media cable company with a service area that includes cities like Emmet, Hope and Prescott in Arkansas.
As of now, speeds up to 250 megabits are available throughout the system. Additional plant construction will begin in 2022, and gigabit service is projected to become available to all residents in the service area by early 2023.
Walter E. Hussman Jr., CEO of WEHCO Media, said this is a big step towards providing the type of network in rural cities that is largely available in bigger cities around the country.
“That is going to be about as fast as you probably can get anywhere, even in a bigger city,” Hussman said. “A lot of people want to get out of the big cities and move to smaller towns. And they realize now that with high-speed internet, they don’t necessarily have to be in a big city to do their work. So, this is hopefully going to give small
town America the ability to compete with larger cities in attracting people. I think this will really help economic development in these cities for future years.”
This same announcement has already been made in Arkansas towns like Camden, Searcy and more in the same effort to improve small-town internet speed.
The company will be making the replacements and improvements necessary to the 180-plus miles of plant that services local citizens over the next couple of years to make this happen.
However, Hussman said the fibers implemented into the system have maintained effectiveness through the years, making the transition a bit easier. The electronics will be the primary sources of the internet that need replacing.
“We’re not going to be cherry-picking areas,” Stacy Eads, area manager of H-P Cable TV, said. “That’s the main thing I want to stress, is that we’re going to be providing this to every resident of Hope, Prescott and Emmet. And that’s huge.”
She said the process will cause little to no inconvenience to the customers, as there will be no re-wiring required for most.
Hussman said this upgrade will not affect the prices that are currently in place.
“If you go up to one gigabit, the price will be a little bit higher,” he said. “But what you’re charged now, those prices will remain the same. This is a big investment for us, but we’re doing fine profitability-wise. We think our pricing is fair right now.”
Hussman also said most people likely won’t need a full gigabit of speed, but the capacity will be there if it is needed.
“We’re excited about this and we want to partner with Hope to bring about a better future, better jobs for people and better economic prospects,” he said.