Big Company Blues... Continued

Jeff Lee, LittleT Broadband

Thought I would post a follow up article for my rant from last week.

At this time Frontier still has not sent a crew to bury the 400’ of fiber laying across my field. Surprised? I have come to learn that I am not alone with this problem as there are many others around the County who have been in a similar situation, some waiting 2-3 months and counting for a crew to come bury fiber on their property. I have also heard anecdotal information from Frontier technicians that the company is behind on installations by more than 700 orders.

Since I have resigned myself to a potentially long wait for getting this wrapped up, I went ahead and put my backup StarLink system on the Stand By plan. $10 a month is a much better option given the wait, and I can always change this back to a regular residential plan if something happens to the unburied fiber.

This all points to growing pains due to unforeseen demand, unforeseen circumstances, poor planning, inadequate staff, or some combination of the whole list. Would another company have handled the new demand better than Frontier? Given the typical approach of large companies to control costs, probably not. Building new broadband infrastructure across the entire County and connecting many thousands of new customers to a new system takes time, and it’s hard for those of us in the middle of the process to be patient.

I was also reminded that Frontier does indeed have a customer service telephone number. Though it does not seem to be published on the website, this number can be found on your monthly statement. Like all large companies, the number will connect you to an automated call system through which connecting to a live person takes time, persistance, and patience. The customer service info found in the Frontier statement is as follows:

For help: Customer Service at frontier.com/helpcenter, chat at frontier.com/chat,
or call us at 800-921-8101. Visually impaired/TTY customers, call 877-462-6606.

I would like to continue hearing from others about their experience with Frontier fiber installation and service.

We are also aware that Charter/Spectrum has begun construction in Macon County. If you have recently been offered or have had Charter/Spectrum internet installed, please share your experience through the contact us form.

Got Fiber... but also Big Company Blues

Jeff Lee, LittleT Broadband

Before StarLink, we had Frontier DSL. At 1Mbps it was barely functional and at times the Frontier DSL network was unstable, but it did mostly work. Frontier support was passable, and technicians came out within a couple of days to repair lines periodically as the need arose, but the company simply was not able to do anything about the performance of the DSL system.

Once we got StarLink in 2022, things were different. StarLink tech support is virtually non-existent, but for me it was not really needed as I had enough technical knowledge for installation and configuration, the the product simply worked. The performance at the time was much better than DSL and continued to increase over time, though the service like others had occasional outages and of course StarLink has a few unique issues that can affect some users. Yes, StarLink is more expensive than more conventional land line systems and does not work for folks that live in areas with dense tree cover.

I was elated to finally have access to Frontier fiber service back at the end of May. Other than a couple of brief outages such as can be expected with any provider, the service has been pretty solid so far. The problem I am experiencing is not with the service itself or the great technicians that did the install, but it has now been 6 weeks and Frontier has not followed through to bury the 400’ of fiber running across the field to our house. Not only has this been an inconvenience as the cable must be moved every week or so when I mow, but it has also cost additional money in monthly fees as I am unwilling to put my StarLink service on standby until the fiber has been buried. Yes this additional cost of maintaining the two services is a choice, but what is the possibility of damage when burying 400’ of fiber, and how long would it be before someone finally comes out to repair it? Seemed like worthwhile insurance during the short wait to get it buried... which is no longer a short wait.

As many are finding out and reporting, Frontier tech support is often not helpful in promptly resolving issues. Sadly this is not unique to Frontier as over the years we have had similar experiences with AT&T, Comcast, Dish, etc. Like most large service providers, Frontier (now part of Verizon) no longer has any direct support phone number for customer service or technical support. You must contact them through chat either from their website or via the Frontier app on your phone… hence the big company blues. While this may be ok for those who spend considerable time on their computer, phone, or tablet, this does not work for all.

In our case, fiber drop burial is handled by an independent contractor and not Frontier directly. Frontier support is simply unable to help at all on this issue. Given the many thousands of new connections that have been installed over the past several months, I am sure the independent contractor is overwhelmed, but there seems no way to track or resolve this.

I have received reports from others that they are having problems with the new fiber service. It seems that most of the issues of which I have been made aware are not really with the fiber itself, but with things that the fiber supports such as wifi and telephone service. In my case I already had a wifi network set up, so bringing in fiber simply provided a new connection to the internet for my existing network. For most folks however, installation of a new fiber connection also comes with new wifi equipment and possibly replacement of the existing copper land-line phone service with a new digital voice connection over the fiber. 

While the new wifi and telephone systems can offer new features and better performance in your home, they are different than the older systems replaced. In this case different can mean that one must learn and get used to the new system, but it can also mean that the new system may not work as well in some situations and will require some tuning or customization for your home. And this where folks are experiencing more big company blues, as getting a Frontier technician out to correct problems can be challenging and a hassle.

The moral of this blog is that starting up any new service to your home is not without its challenges and hassles, so one must make that decision with their eyes open to this possibility. Though I and many others are experiencing shortcomings in the Frontier support services, sadly this is not much different from other large service providers. If you are fortunate enough to have a choice of multiple service providers, take the time to look at the offering as a whole and not just based on cost… sometimes using a more expensive service from a smaller company with a great service reputation may be a better value than a low cost service from a large provider with a poor reputation.

Pigs Fly...

Jeff Lee, LittleT Broadband

…well, maybe here in Otto. Frontier technicians came to our house yesterday and finally connected us to fiber.

My quest for high-speed internet started 8 years ago when a small group of us in Otto formed LittleT Broadband. It took 8 years... talking to service providers, countless project and grant proposals, Frontier going through bankruptcy, a pandemic which created awareness of the need for rural broadband expansion, new grant funding (again thanks to the pandemic) to entice providers to undertake rural broadband work, many meetings, emails, working with Macon County, the Southwestern Commission, regional partners, and the state of North Carolina. Though grant projects to build fiber started in 2021, large construction projects take time. Thankfully, the availability of StarLink in 2022 helped bridge the gap for many of us while we have waited for fiber builds to be completed. Fiber construction projects are far from finished in our area, but some of these are nearing completion and many of us are now getting connected.

I have been in a position to see the grant projects get started and then watch and monitor progress. The ironic part of that was watching many parts of Macon County get connected while we continued to wait at our home. I watched Frontier contractors build fiber along the road where I live, talked to technicians doing the install, splicing, and testing, and then tried to wait patiently for Frontier to advertise service. Like many of you I put my address into the Frontier website on a periodic basis in hopes of a hit. Last week I got lucky and instead of “Fiber is Coming” I got the response “Fiber is Available” and I was able to order service and schedule installation. It took less than a week from my order until installation.

My installation appointment was scheduled for the afternoon, but a Frontier technician showed up in the morning and said I was their first order on this new hub (box that serves an area) and they could start earlier if ok. Of course that was ok with me though might have been inconvenient for others, and I was happy to be a guinea pig. I knew my install would be a challenge as there is at least 600’ between my house and the pole with the fiber connection up at the road. Another tech showed up to help with the install, and the guys were done in a few hours, though a crew still needs to come back to bury the fiber laying across my yard. I was ready for the install and all we had to do was plug a cable into our existing network. Others will likely have a more involved setup with new wifi, passwords, etc. The new connection delivered 800Mbs down and 1.05Gbs up immediately, though the latency seems a bit high for fiber at 22-24ms. I’ll take it.

I will say that Starlink has been great. It was a complete game changer starting in 2022 compared to the intermittant 1Mbs DSL we had previously, and it has been pretty solid. The speed goes up and down, there have been some outages, and there are other anomalies one may experience that do not happen with a more conventional service provider like Frontier. With the Helene experience in mind, we will put StarLink in standby mode and keep it as our backup internet connection. Though the Frontier fiber service seems pretty solid, the fiber does come up our valley along the power poles and will be subject to outages due to storms that bring down branches and trees. Starlink was an incredible lifeline in the aftermath of Helene, and placing it in standby mode allows us to keep it active for only $5/mo... hard to beat for insurance. Even with keeping Starlink on standby, the total cost for both fiber and Starlink will run less than half of what I was paying for full speed residential Starlink.

It remains to be seen if Frontier will deliver better service quality than they have in the past. My experience with their DSL product was not great. I have heard good reports to date from others who have had Frontier fiber installed so I will remain hopeful. Frontier was recently acquired by Verizon, though they are still retaining the Frontier name at this time. I’m sure this will affect the price of service over time, though there may be opportunities to bundle services and billing for those of us that also have Verizon mobile service.

So, my personal saga in the quest for high-speed internet nears the end, though many of you are still waiting. Patience is all I can offer as there is so much construction work still in progress. If a frontier contractor has built fiber along your road, I would encourage you to go to the Frontier website, put in your address, and keep looking for service. In southern parts of the County (Otto and Scaly), BalsamWest may be the provider and you should reach out to them via their website or phone number to see if service is available. Charter/Spectrum has recently entered the County and begun fiber construction in the Northeast. Charter has a similar website interface and folks should check that as well for fiber availability as their service will roll out over the next couple of years.

If you have recently been connected to fiber, please let me know through the contact us form. This helps to build a picture of where connectivity is expanding in Macon County.

Macon County Broadband Update for December 2025

We have had many active broadband expansion projects around Macon County this past year.
Here is a brief update on what has been accomplished and what is in store for 2026.

Active and Completed Projects for 2025

Frontier GREAT Grant

This has been the largest broadband expansion project to date visible to Macon County Residents. Frontier received a grant through the North Carolina GREAT grant program to provide fiber service to approximately 2700 locations across the County. In addition, Frontier is investing a large portion of their own funds to provide fiber service to an additional 20,000+ residences and businesses.

Frontier’s primary contractor, ITG, and many smaller sub contractors have been busy all across Macon County installing both aerial and underground fiber. Frontier has teams of its own technicians beginning to connect customers to the new fiber network. Though fiber work has slowed over the holiday season and due to some permitting delays they are working through with Duke Energy, we anticipate this activity to pick up pace after the first of the year. Frontier has filed for an extension with NCDIT to complete their grant related work by June of 2026, though we anticipate work to connect non grant locations will continue past the end of 2026.

You can go to Frontier’s website at https://frontier.com and enter your address to check on fiber availability. If fiber is already available to your location, you can schedule installation, and if not you will be put on an email list to notify you of updates.

BalsamWest GREAT Grant

This project is another funded through a grant from the NC GREAT Grant program. BalsamWest is working to connect approximately 270 locations in the Otto and Scaly Mountain area. This project builds from the fiber backbone constructed as part of the South Macon Broadband Expansion project completed in 2022. To date BalsamWest has completed all of their underground fiber work and is working to finish up the remaining aerial fiber installation. They have already begun connecting homes in the Otto area and should begin connections in Scaly Mountain after the first of the year. BalsamWest is scheduled to complete this project by the fall of 2026.

Cowee School Public WiFi

Cowee School is the largest community anchor institution in the Cowee area, and is a location included in the Frontier GREAT grant award list. In anticipation of fiber availability at this location the County used grant funding made available through the Southwestern Commission to upgrade and expand the wifi network at the School. The network upgrade and public wifi work was completed in the fall of 2025. Though fiber has not yet arrived at the school, the new public wifi network is active using the existing DSL service. As soon as it becomes available, service to the new network will be upgraded to fiber.

Carson Community Center Public WiFi

As part of the new Macon County Resiliency Program kicked off by the WNC Communities, Carson Community Center was one of several facilities identified that did not have any internet connectivity. We were able to work with the Carson Community Club to get Frontier Fiber Service installed, and utilize some remaining grant funds left over from the Nantahala and Cowee School projects to purchase and install public WiFi equipment. This work was completed on December 19th and public WiFi is now available at the Carson Community Center facility.

Future Projects for 2026

Frontier CAB Grant

In the spring of 2025 Frontier received an additional grant through the NC CAB program. This grant will help Frontier connect and serve over 400 additional locations in the Sanders Town area with fiber internet. Frontier’s contractor ITG has begun staging material at their facility on the GA Road, and we expect construction for this project to be ongoing throughout 2026.

Charter/Spectrum RDOF Subsidy Award

In 2022 Charter/Spectrum received a subsidy award from the FCC RDOF program to bring fiber service to over 8000 locations in Macon County. Though Charter has been building in Jackson, they have yet to cross Cowee Mountain and begin active fiber construction in Macon, and they have until 2028 to complete fiber deployment under this program. We are hopeful they will begin work in Macon County after the first of the year and that they will complete their obligation to serve ALL locations awarded within the County.

NTIA BEAD Grants

NTIA is the federal agency responsible for the $42.5B BEAD grant program funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which was signed into law in 2021. The BEAD program was intended to bring sweeping relief to rural areas that still do not have high speed internet available, and to build lasting broadband infrastructure that would place rural communities on equal footing with metro areas. The NTIA spent 2021-2023 working with states to allocate funding fairly for each state based on need and to approve grant programs for each state that will be used to distribute these funds.

In January 2025, the new administration put a halt on the BEAD program funding and canceled another broadband grant program that was created as part of the legislation. In June of 2025, the NTIA released updated rules for the BEAD program that eliminated the preference for 20+ year fiber infrastructure and created new grant award requirements including “Benefit of the Bargain”. In other words, rather than allowing states to select providers and technology they felt most appropriate for given areas, all states had to restart their grant process and select the lowest cost applicant.

The State of North Carolina (NCDIT) restarted their BEAD grant application process under the new rules in July and submitted a final award plan to NTIA in August. On December 19th after several rounds of negotiation with NTIA, an NC Final Proposal was approved by NTIA. This approved award proposal will allocate approximately $300M of the $1.5B allocated to the State of North Carolina to serve its rural communities. It is unclear at this time if NC will be able to access the remanning $1.2B for further broadband expansion, or whether these funds will be reclaimed by the fed.

Under this newly approved grant program, within Macon County Charter/Spectrum is to be awarded funding for connection of 1464 locations to fiber, and Amazon LEO (Kuiper) is to be awarded funding to connect 168 locations through their new satellite service. Final awards to these providers is pending execution of contracts with the state.

Smaller Broadband Grant Programs

We are working to access a couple of smaller grant programs with the goal of continuing to expand public wifi around the county. Stay tuned for future project announcements along these lines after the first of the year.

Frontier Fiber Progress

Last week I was very encouraged to see Frontier's contractor trucks working their way up our road to install fiber. I knew that Frontier would be building at least to a point where they have grant award locations, but was not sure if they would build any farther than there at this time. I was pleasantly surprised to see them continuing up the road beyond the grant locations, meaning that they will be bringing fiber service to more homes in our valley.

Like many parts of Macon County, we live in an area that was awarded to Charter Communications (Spectrum) through the FCC RDOF program. Though we have seen a few “Spectrum Internet Coming Soon” signs here and there, the Broadband Committee has been told that Charter will not begin building in Macon until after the first of the year. Since Charter has the FCC RDOF award, no other provider can receive federal or state grant funding to build in these areas, and Charter has until 2028 to complete the build - assuming choose to build all locations. The good news is that any provider can build in RDOF awards areas using their own funds, and this is exactly what is happening today with Frontier.

Frontier told the County that they planned to build fiber to many locations beyond just their grant obligations, but until it started happening we had no way of knowing how much of this would actually occur. We do know that Frontier is spending far more to build fiber throughout the County than they are receiving through grants, and it is great to see Frontier making good on that promise in some areas.

The Frontier contractors that we have all seen around the County since last fall are installing what the company refers to as “feeder" fiber, which are the fiber cables that extend from two primary Frontier wire centers out into the community. The contractor like the one installing near our home will only run the primary “feeder” fiber cable down the road. Another contractor or Frontier directly will come back later to run drop fiber extensions to individual homes. If the fiber has been run passed your home, it is highly likely you will be offered fiber service. It is in Frontier’s financial interest to connect as many homes as possible to help the business case for their investment. Prior to Frontier connecting homes, those affected should see an advertising blitz to get connected.

Many that have or have had Frontier DSL service continue to voice concerns about less than ideal experiences with DSL and/or Frontier. However, dealing with Frontier will only be required in the short term, as Frontier is merging with Verizon and that merger is expected to become final before the end of the year. So, those accepting fiber service from Frontier will ultimately be Verizon customers. It will remain to be seen what changes come as Verizon takes over, but for those with Verizon mobile service it is likely that bundling options with phone and internet will become available.

Great to see actual progress in our county!

StarLink and Rewrite of Broadband Grant Rules

Jeff Lee, LittleT Broadband

I am subscribed to a number of broadband discussion groups and forums. A discussion topic that has surfaced in recent months relates to StarLink and anticipated changes in the upcoming broadband grant rules from the NTIA.

As I mentioned in previous posts and presented to the commissioners on May 13th, the current administration has changed leadership at the NTIA which is the federal agency responsible for the $42.5B BEAD grant program. The BEAD program was intended to bring sweeping relief to rural areas that still do not have high speed internet available. The NTIA has spent the last 3 years working with states to allocate funding fairly for each state and to approve grant programs for each state that will be used to disribute these funds. The new leadership at the NTIA has idicated that it will be making changes to the rules which govern how these funds will be distributed, a process which is adding delay and uncertainty to the outcome of these program.

One rule that is anticipated to change is the type of broadband technology favored by the grant program. The current rules and programs in most states favor grant appllications that will deploy fiber, which is considered the gold standard and the technology that can deliver the performance and growth needed over the next 10-20 years. All of the broadband grants projects currently under construction in Macon County are deploying fiber, and most all broadband grant programs since 2020 have favored fiber as a preferred solution by more heavily weighting this technology when scoring grant applications. Though fiber is favored, other technologies are stilled allowed when applications with fiber solutions are not available.

A technology expected to receive increased favor or weighting is satellite, which includes broadband services such as SpaceX StarLink. Commissioner Shields specifically asked about StarLink at the end of the Broadband Update discussion during the last BOC meeting on May 13th. When spending taxpayer dollars on grants to invest in infrastructure, most states, counties, and municipalities want to invest grant funding in rural areas for which there is confidence in long term growth and reliablity. They also want to invest in infrastructure that will place their rural residents and businesses on equal footing with those in large metro areas.

I personally have been using the StarLink service for about three years, and it is hands down better than DSL and the other satellite internet services currently available. It has made an incredible difference in our household, and I am thankful it has been available. Though I feel StarLink is an excellent internet service for those that need it, can afford it, and can receive it at their location, I do not feel it should be given equal weight when considering broadband technologies for a rual broadband grant. Though StarLink is a great solution for many folks, it cannot and does not deliver the equivalent performance and experience as a fiber broadband connection. When fiber becomes available at my home, I will not hesitate to drop StarLink and switch over to fiber reguardless of the provider.

We want the residents and businesses of Macon County to have access to the same technologies as those in metro areas. For that reason I feel that we must continue to advocate for keeping fiber as the gold standard of broadband services to which all Macon residents and business should have access. Fiber needs to continue being the most heavily weighted technology when considering applications for grant funding. This will help insure that our rural residents and businesses have the same service opportunities as in metro areas.