Windstream (NASDAQ: WIN), a leading provider of advanced network communications and technology solutions, today announced that it has deployed fixed wireless technology to deliver broadband speeds up to 100 megabits per second (Mbps) to customers in western Poteau.

About 900 locations in Poteau are covered by this first phase of the project. When the project is completed later this year, about 8,800 locations in the Poteau area will qualify for fixed wireless broadband.

Windstream is using fixed wireless technology to help meet its obligations under the FCC’s Connect America Fund initiative, which is designed to support network upgrades in rural areas that would otherwise not be economically feasible.

“Fixed wireless technology is an alternative to traditional cabled networks that enables Windstream to deploy broadband service more quickly and cost effectively in some rural areas,” said Aaron Morris, director of Windstream Operations in Oklahoma. “I’m delighted that we have been able to bring this innovative technology to bear in the Poteau area. We know customers want faster speed, and we are committed to delivering it.”

Fixed wireless is not a mobile service. Pole-mounted antennas transmit the broadband signal to receivers at each eligible customer’s home or business. The performance of the fixed wireless connection is comparable to wired solutions.

Source: Windstream media announcement