RT Communications was created through the vision of Range Telephone Cooperative’s Board of Trustees to provide the latest in telecommunications services to the residents of Wyoming. The opportunity to begin their quest came with the announcement of US WEST’s intention to sell 26 of its Wyoming exchanges in February 1993. Range Telephone was successful in its bid for 16 of the 26 Wyoming exchanges in June 1993, and in July, filings to the Federal Communications Commission were made naming the newly created Wyoming subsidiary, RT Communications, Inc. The Wyoming Public Service Commission issued a 142-page document approving the sale in February 1994. In August of that same year, the Federal Communications Commission granted approval of the acquisition. Shortly thereafter, bids for state-of-the-art digital switching equipment to modernize the purchased exchanges were requested from industry vendors. Management and staff personnel started arriving in late September while customer service representatives began training. Many of the technicians were hired from US WEST and transitioned to RT in late October. Closing activities were conducted in the US WEST state headquarters in Cheyenne on October 25, 1994. Thus initially relegated to serve 14,409 customers on antiquated facilities, but strongly supported by 38 enthusiastic new employees, RT Communications officially began operations on October 26, 1994.
Communities served by RT include Albin, Burns, Carpenter, Gas Hills, Hulett, Jeffrey City, Kaycee, Midwest, Moorcroft, Newcastle, Osage, Pine Bluffs, Shoshoni, Thermopolis, Upton, and Worland. Worland, as the largest exchange, was selected as the site for RT’s corporate headquarters. Extensive remodeling of the former US WEST building was completed to meet the modernization plans and office needs of the new company.
Manned with a determination to succeed, RT Communications and its staff set out to attain its vision to update the state’s telecommunications infrastructure and provide the latest in communications services to its customers. By the end of March 1998, RT Communications had converted all of its outdated analog switches to digital DMS100 and DMS10 switches. With this accomplished, RT would now be able to extend its offering of products and services.
In addition to its core local telephone services, RT Communications partnered with the Casper Star Tribune, the states most widely circulated newspaper in 1996 to provide internet access to its subscribers. RT provided the Internet connectivity and sales, and the Tribune provided customer support, sales, and billing. RT was equipped to support dial-up as well as ISDN and T1 connectivity. This joint venture lasted until 2003 when, RT integrated its Internet service into its local service, providing a bundled product for its subscribers.
Working to further increase its market share and scope of services in the Wyoming region, RT Communications participated in the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Personal Communications Services (PCS) auctions in 1996, winning wireless licenses in Cheyenne, Casper and Riverton, Wyoming Basic Trading Areas (BTAs). SpectraCom, Inc. d.b.a. PYXIS Communications was founded October 29, 1997 as a subsidiary of RT Communications to oversee its PCS operation. The markets chosen for PCS service complimented RT’s service areas thereby augmenting RT’s existing wireline services with digital wireless services to new and existing subscribers throughout the region. The wireless subsidiary, PYXIS Communications, was also headquartered in Worland and had five outlying offices located in the cities of Casper, Cheyenne, Laramie, Gillette and Riverton. PYXIS launched the first digital wireless network in the state in April of 1999 and operated until September 29, 2003 when it was sold to Union Telephone Company.
Through a partnership with its sister company, Advanced Communications Technology, Inc. (ACT) of Sheridan, RT was able to launch a suite of additional products in the 4th quarter 2002, which included Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) and Internet access.
Current Status
Since RT was established, approximately $75 million has been invested to update the infrastructure. To date, state-of-the-art digital switching and associated services and features have been provided to 99% of its customers. RT, along with its parent company Range Telephone Cooperative and its sister companies ACT and Dubois Telephone Exchange(DTE) have placed over 800 miles of optical fiber cable in the State of Wyoming. – touting the largest fiber transport network in the state. In addition to the transport fiber, RT has added fiber-to–the-home in many of its service areas – leading the way for future services. The Company’s major strength is its ability to provide state-of-the-art, reasonably priced telecommunications services and features which were previously unavailable to its subscribers.
RT is acknowledged as an active community leader. With an employee base of 64, it is recognized as a premier employer, offering a competitive compensation and benefit package to attract and retain a quality workforce. RT encourages community involvement and teamwork and has experienced very little employee turnover as a result of its culture and high standards.
RT Communications serves approximately 15,300 subscribers in Wyoming, as well as small regions of Montana, Nebraska, and South Dakota. The company markets its products and services to residential and business consumers. RT’s service, sales, and distribution are provided by a group of highly trained technicians, customer service representatives, data specialists, and engineers.
Services and features offer by RT today include local telephone service, long distance service, local access, CENTREX, voice mail data network services, switch 56, E-911, custom calling features, CLASS services, interconnection services, conferencing services, high-speed internet access, web site hosting, and business telephone systems.
