SRT is a proud supporter of Downtown Minot. Each year, several SRT employees string the lights on the Christmas tree as part of the downtown decoration. Everyone is invited to the Downtown Old Fashioned Christmas Open House on Friday. November 29 from 3:30-7:00 p.m. for hay rides, hot chocolate, photos with Santa, and wrapping the night up with the lighting of the tree. Come out to support your local downtown businesses and kick off the Holiday season with us!
Thanks to an online fundraiser by Independence, Inc. and The Good Talk Network, enough funds were raised to provide the Minot Public Library with an adaptive gaming controller that is available for public use at the library. An adaptive gaming controller allows kids and adults of all abilities to be able to experience playing video games, perhaps for the first time ever. The adaptive controller is designed to pair with multiple accessories that can be customized to the needs of the gamer depending on their physical limitations. This inclusive customization means each gamer can have the best gaming experience possible.
SRT pledged to match donations up to $1,000 once Independence, Inc. and The Good Talk Network met their original goal. It didn’t take long for people to respond to the online fundraiser, as the initial goal of $1,000 was met in just under two weeks. The fundraiser organizers were so grateful and inspired by the community’s response.
“Gaming is something everyone should be able to experience and has been denied to those with disabilities for too long. Scott Burlingame [Executive Director at Independence, Inc.] and I saw this need in our community and knew we wanted to launch this online fundraiser.
It was fantastic to see the public response was extremely positive and supportive,” said Jonah Lantto, Owner and Host of The Good Talk Network. “The Minot Public Library was the perfect choice because it would make it very accessible. With all the added accessories that may be required depending on an individual, these controllers can become costly. We wanted to make sure everyone who would like to try the adaptive controller would have that opportunity. ”The adaptive gaming controller is now at the Minot Public Library and library staff are training in preparation of its public launch, which will be soon.
If you or someone you know would be interested in playing, make sure to follow Minot Public Library on social media for an official opening date or be on the lookout for any adaptive controller upcoming events!
It’s that time of year again: temperatures are falling, leaves are turning, and all you want to do on a Friday night is curl up on the couch with a blanket, a bowl of popcorn, and a marathon of your favorite TV show. Thanks to Netflix, accessing all 234 episodes of Friends is now as easy as pressing play—but have you ever wondered how all that content gets to your home?
Netflix’s United States library alone holds more than 6,000 titles, and delivering this much content across the country depends on a reliable, high-speed internet connection. If you live in North Dakota, chances are the show or movie you are currently watching was brought to you by one of the 14 broadband providers that are owners of Dakota Carrier Network (DCN) and members of the Broadband Association of North Dakota (BAND).
From the server to your screen, here’s how Netflix arrives in North Dakota homes.
Creating a Global Network
Netflix has evolved from a subscription-based DVD-by-mail service into the most influential video streaming service in the world, with the number of global subscribers increasing from just 4 million in 2005 to nearly 150 million in 2019. In order to keep up with its rapidly growing viewer base, Netflix has had to make drastic changes to the way it operates.
In the early years of its streaming services, Netflix owned and operated all of its own servers—but these servers simply could not keep up with the breakneck speed at which demand was growing. In order to deliver more content at faster speeds and lower costs, Netflix launched a content delivery network (CDN) called Open Connect in 2011.
A CDN takes content from an original source and copies it onto servers located all over the world. To establish this network, Netflix has reached out to internet service providers around the globe and provided them with Open Connect appliances to install in their data centers.
These small, rack-mountable boxes contain the Netflix content library, downloaded from the original Netflix servers. Now, every time you log in to Netflix, the app scans for a nearby Open Connect box. The content you request will be delivered by the Open Connect box nearest you, so your movie or episode can play at the push of a button.
Netflix in North Dakota
Netflix has Open Connect appliances in close to 1,000 locations around the world—in cities as large as New York, London, and Tokyo, as remote as the Amazon rainforest, and right here in North Dakota.
“Netflix reached out to DCN in 2014, when they noticed that the majority of subscribers in North Dakota were coming to Netflix through the DCN network,” said Seth Arndorfer, CEO of DCN. “As a result of that, we have worked with Netflix to place a copy of the entire Netflix library in DCN’s data center in Bismarck as well as in Fargo.”
Before Open Connect, when you selected a movie from Netflix on your television in North Dakota, the app would need to request that content from Netflix’s main server in Chicago.
“Think of it as a highway system, and the amount of time that it would take to get from Hettinger, North Dakota to Chicago,” Seth said. “Then, factor in the amount of traffic you would have to compete with to get there.”
On the information superhighway that is the internet, the farther away a piece of content is located, the more traffic you must compete with to reach it and the longer it will take to load—a phenomenon known as latency.
When it comes to streaming, latency means more buffering, low video quality, and a subpar experience for the viewer.
“Latency is a very important term in our industry. We want to have low latency in all applications,” Seth said. “That’s why we work with Netflix and other content providers to get the content as close to the customer’s eyes as possible, so that the end user experience is as simultaneous as possible.”
Now, instead of travelling all the way to Chicago and back, your request is sent to the Open Connect box in either DCN’s Fargo or Bismarck data centers. From there, the content travels along fiber optic cabling deployed by DCN, its owners, and associate members across the state, and appears on your screen within milliseconds.
As more households complement their traditional TV viewing with streaming services, the decision to partner with Netflix on the Open Connect Network reflects DCN’s ongoing commitment to evolve along with the needs of North Dakotans.
“That’s really what DCN does,” Seth said. “We make investments in North Dakota that are highly technical and complex, but for an end user, it simplifies their life.”
Through this relationship with Netflix, the owners of DCN–North Dakota’s rural broadband service providers–and BAND members are able to deliver content to North Dakota homes at a higher quality and faster speed than ever before, so you don’t have to wait for your next episode of Friends to start.
Interested in getting the best streaming quality possible? Contact your local broadband provider about upgrading your speed!
When the nearest grocery store is more than thirty miles away, it’s easier said than done to make a “quick trip” into town to grab a gallon of milk. For many, the luxury of convenience is worth sacrificing to live in a rural community. But with the advancement of technology, North Dakota residents no longer need to choose between convenience and the comfort of living in a small rural community. Thanks to broadband, North Dakota is more connected than ever before.
For Liz Tofteland of Westhope, ND, choosing to live in a rural community was an easy decision to make.
“I love the atmosphere. I love the community,” Liz said. “It’s a great place to raise a family.”
And as a nurse, Liz has plenty of opportunities to care for her community. Liz is a North Dakota E-Care Program Manager, offering school nursing services to rural schools across the state. In rural schools, where it’s difficult to have an on-site nurse at a moment’s notice, new telenursing programs like E-Care make it possible to provide care everywhere, from anywhere.
Using a uniquely designed video chat service and remote devices that deliver data from a township away, telenurses are able to evaluate, diagnose, and treat students. Telenursing has provided new opportunities for care–opportunities that wouldn’t be possible without the broadband services that support it.
For SRT, the local broadband provider and Broadband Association of North Dakota (BAND) members whose services support the care that Liz provides, being a part of the impact made by telenursing is a point of pride.
“For a parent, it’s a point of security,” said Cassidy Kersten Hjemstad, SRT Communications Director. “And, as a provider, it’s a point of pride for us.”
In communities like Westhope, hospitals are few and far between. E-Care programs allow health professionals to provide care with convenience, giving parents, students, and school staff a greater sense of security and peace of mind.
The broadband connections that SRT provides make it possible for telenurses like Liz to administer care to a large number of schools that otherwise wouldn’t typically have a school nurse.
“We’re able to do what we need. We don’t even think twice about it,” Liz said.
All the work that Liz does with E-Care is online. Without quality, reliable broadband, thousands of students in rural schools would go without access to necessary healthcare.
“The fact that she can do her job from home and get healthcare to schools is amazing,” Cassidy said. “To know that SRT can be a part of that is exciting.”
Broadband providers, such as SRT, have made the accessibility to care more convenient than ever before. With the framework and support systems of broadband in place, it’s possible to give care everywhere.
To learn more about BAND and how its member organizations are supporting care in their communities, visit broadbandnd.com
When Victoria Clair moved from Las Vegas to Williston, North Dakota in 2015, she was drawn to the easy-going pace of small-town life. Unhurried by the hustle and bustle of a big city, residents could take time to unwind, connect with the natural world around them, and form relationships with their neighbors.
“We fell in love with the people here,” Victoria said. “They’re good, they’re kind, they’re involved, and it’s not such a rush.”
But while Victoria enjoys the slow pace of her new small-town life, she needs the resources that her small business runs on to move quickly. As manager of Destiny Med Spa in Williston, Victoria relies on broadband offered by her local provider and BAND member, Nemont Telephone Cooperative, to communicate with patients and connect them with industry-leading health and wellness solutions.
“Because it’s high-speed, it gives us efficiency,” Victoria said. “We’ve experienced living in a rural area previously, and the internet there was unreliable because the infrastructure was old. And so we feel very blessed here because the infrastructure is new and up to date.”
Jerry Tilley, Chief Operations Officer of Nemont, recognizes that dependable, efficient internet is no longer a luxury, but a necessity—one that is not limited to major cities. For many years, as internet access expanded and improved in cities across the country, rural communities like Williston continued to be overlooked by internet service providers. That is where the member organizations that make up the Broadband Association of North Dakota (BAND) stepped in.
“We serve, in many cases, areas that no one else really is interested in serving,” Jerry said. “We’re the ones that care about our friends and neighbors and communities.”
Caring for your neighbor is just what North Dakotans do, and it is what sets BAND and our members apart from other providers. With 18 member companies delivering world-class telecommunication services across the state, BAND’s members ensure that their customers are able to communicate with and provide for their communities, regardless of population numbers or proximity to larger cities.
“The members of BAND have taken it very seriously to deploy fiber optic facilities throughout the state,” said Keith Larson, Chief Executive Officer of Dakota Central. “Thanks to the collective efforts of the BAND members, we’ve been able to be one of the most connected states in the U.S.”
Check out our “Care Everywhere” video above to see the impact that BAND member companies are having on communities across North Dakota!
Every day, the quality broadband provided by BAND and our member companies is used to improve the lives of North Dakota residents. “Care Everywhere” highlights just a handful of the ways that our customers are utilizing broadband to care for their communities.
The North Dakota E-Care School Health Program, a collaborative effort between Mid Dakota Education Cooperative and the North Dakota Department of Health, utilizes high-speed internet provided by BAND member SRT Communications to help students at rural schools access the healthcare they need. The program connects students with registered nurses via video call, while medical attachments called peripherals allow them to conduct exams and give recommendations about whether the student should stay in school, go home, or see a doctor for further testing.
According to Liz Tofteland, program manager for ND E-Care, something as basic as dependable broadband can mean fewer hospital visits and greater overall quality of life for students at rural and under-served schools.
That knowledge brings the entire community peace of mind.
“We wouldn’t have this opportunity for our rural schools to have actual RNs available to them throughout the day without our internet service,” she said. “To know that those kids are going to be safe gives us so much more comfort.”
While broadband access is making groundbreaking new programs like ND E-Care possible, it is also improving the services of long-standing North Dakota institutions. Kris Nitschke is the therapy operations manager at the Jamestown campus of the Anne Carlsen Center, a non-profit that has been working to make the world a more inclusive place by providing education and support for individuals with developmental disabilities for more than 75 years.
High-speed internet access provided by BAND member Dakota Central Telecommunications Cooperative allows Kris and her colleagues to deliver more services to more individuals. Kris has seen first-hand that impact that this has on the Center’s residents.
“I am here because of the individuals we serve. They are amazing, amazing people and they teach me more every day,” she said. “Broadband can support them so they don’t lose the services. When you see them reach a goal more quickly it makes it all better and it makes for a joyous situation. You just get happy when they are happy.”
Committed to Care—Everywhere
Customers like Kris, Liz, and Victoria go to work every day because they care about the people they serve. It is not about money, or praise, but about making a difference in the lives of North Dakotans.
It is the same reason BAND members are devoted to delivering quality broadband to every corner of the state.
“Our heart is in the right place. I know there are folks who look at us as just another company trying to make a buck, but that’s not true,” Jerry Tilley said. “We do need to make money to stay in business, everyone does, but we are absolutely committed to doing the best we can and providing the best services for those that we serve.”
As BAND, we promise to continue delivering high-speed, reliable broadband across North Dakota so that our customers continue to focus on what matters: caring for their communities.
To learn more about BAND and your local broadband provider, visit www.broadbandnd.com.
