TDS Telecom is an Americantelecommunications company with headquarters inMadison, Wisconsin. It is a wholly owned subsidiary ofTelephone and Data Systems Inc, and is the seventh-largestlocal exchange carrier in the U.S.[1] TDS Telecom offerstelephone, broadbandInternet andtelevision services to customers in 30 states and more than 900 rural and suburban communities, though it also serves some urban metropolitan communities.[1] It also sells businesses communications services, includingVoIP (managed IP hosted) phone service, dedicated broadband Internet and hosted-managed services. With headquarters in Madison, TDS Telecom operates TDS Broadband LLC, andBendBroadband, and TDS Metrocom, LLC. Combined, the company employs nearly 3,300 people.[1] In 2019, TDS Telecom and parent company TDS Inc. celebrated 50 years in business.
TDS Telecom is a participant in the FCC's Connect America Fund, also known as A-CAM. With this funding TDS is on a ten-year push to bring high speed internet to the furthest reaches of its rural serving areas. Depending on location, the vast majority of TDS customers in eligible rural areas are expected to receive broadband speeds of 25 Mbit/s download and 3 Mbit/s upload (25/3). The remaining customers are expected to receive broadband speeds at 10/1 and 4/1 Mbit/s. In less rural areas, TDS provides much higher broadband speeds, from 100 Mbps to 8 Gbps.
TDS Metrocom is TDS Telecom's local phone business, providing customers with phone, data, and Internet services in a five-state area in themidwestern United States. Its central office is located at 3416 University Ave inMadison, Wisconsin. UnlikeTelecom, Metrocom used a deal brokered byTommy Thompson to allow for local phone service competition onAT&T's lines in exchange for long distance plan selling rights over landline. They are no longer offering this service to new residential subscribers, but continue to maintain existing contracts, new features, or new locations on existing accounts. TDS Metrocom is currently in maintenance mode, where they are allowed to maintain existing telephone and Internet installations but not add any new telephone or Internet accounts. Business accounts are still available.
