Rural Cellular history

He left McCaw in 1991, but before his departure he already had begun his career as an entrepreneur.

Fairfield, California-based General Cellular Corporation, which had filed for bankruptcy in 1992 after accumulating more than $100 million in losses, was Stanton's target.

In July 1994, Stanton doubled the size of Pacific Northwest Cellular by combining it with General Cellular, at the time valued between $240 million and $275 million, according to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Sales by the end of 1995--the company's first full year in business--reached $146 million.

In May 1996, Stanton turned to the public securities market as a means to pay down debt and to inject his company with a fresh supply of capital.

By 1999, the company offered service in 101 properties with licensed coverage of 9.1 million people.

Operating revenue by the end of 2000 reached $475 million, more than three times the volume recorded two years earlier.

A May 2001 Financial Times article announced that Rural Cellular was in fact seeking a buyer.

In 2002, NPI's 38,000 subscribers enabled the company to generate $20 million in revenue.

In August 2003, Dobson Communications became the sole owner of American Cellular.

By early 2004, Dobson Communications owned wireless operations in 16 states, operating in markets that were populated by 10.6 million people.

Another important broadband initiative for NTCA came in 2010 when the association and its rural allies launched a comprehensive Save Rural Broadband campaign to tout the critical need for broadband access for all Americans.

The Gig-Certified Smart Rural Community Provider™ designation was a rebrand of the Gig-Certified Provider program that NTCA launched in 2015 to recognize NTCA members capable of delivering gigabit service to the vast majority of locations in an exchange.

The year 2017 marked a change in presidential administration, which included a greater emphasis on rural issues and the need to invest in infrastructure, including rural infrastructure.

The increased importance of broadband and the decline in traditional voice lines prompted NTCA in 2018 to change its dues formula so that dues would be based on broadband subscribers, rather than on voice lines, which had been the traditional method.

In 2019, NTCA celebrated both the 50th anniversary of the association’s Rural Broadband PAC, previously known as TECO, and the 25th anniversary of the Foundation for Rural Service.

Over the last decade, NTCA has focused on numerous key initiatives for rural telecom that remain a key focus in the 2020s.