This is the final installment of my three-part series on the reasons it is important to keep your landline phone service. If you haven't had a chance to yet read parts one or two of this series, you can do so by clicking here or here.

This week I'll be focusing on reasons three and four: superior call quality and alarm monitoring services.

Reason Three: Superior Call Quality Reason three for keeping your landline phone is to retain superior call quality. Despite the cost-saving associated with digital phone and wireless services, landline phone service still provides superior voice quality. This is due to digital channels relaying calls through the Internet, utilizing user datagram protocol (UDP) and wireless phones using line-of-site transmission through cellular towers. Landlines, on the other hand, have a dedicated and reliable line for verbal conversations. In addition, landlines do not face the same issues such as echo or dropped calls like many digital and wireless systems.

Reason Four: Alarm Monitoring Services Reason four for keeping your landline phone is for alarm monitoring services. As mentioned above, digital phones require continuous power. Without power, digital phones cannot send security system signals to monitoring centers, leaving homes and businesses unprotected. In addition, software changes and updates service providers send to individual alarm systems may not be transmitted through digital phone services during power outages, rendering alarm systems useless.

While digital and wireless services may be the wave of the future, here at HTC, we strongly encourage users, as well as those who have switched to digital or wireless exclusive phone services, to stay or return to traditional landline service for safety, connectivity and ease of use. Landline phones are a time-tested, reliable service that is essential to any home or business owner.

I hope that this series has helped to shed some light on the importance of landlines, and if you were thinking of ditching your landline, hopefully now you'll reconsider.

Until next time, Happy Holidays from all of us here at HTC.

Best,

Tom

This is the second installment of my three-part series on the reasons it is important keep your landline phone service. If you haven't had a chance to yet read part one, you can do so by clicking here.

This week I'll be focusing on reason two: 911 emergency services.

Reason Two: 911 Emergency Service Contrary to claims that 911 is well-supported through digital phone service, it is not always true. Normally, independent Internet calling services are not directly in sync with city or county 911 locator systems. This results in emergency operators being unable to see home addresses if users make an emergency call for assistance and are unable to talk or for some reason become disconnected. While many digital phone service providers originally chose not to offer any support for 911, it is beginning to change due to the FCC ruling in May 2005 to make it compulsory for all providers to support 911.

With wireless phones come another set of challenges for public safety and emergency response personnel, as well as wireless service providers. Because wireless phones are mobile, they are not associated with one fixed location or address. While the location of the cell site closest to the caller may provide a general indication of the caller's location, that information is not always specific enough for rescue personnel to deliver assistance to the caller in an efficient manner. Existing wireless location services may miss the location of a phone by up to 100 yards, a significant distance in times of emergency. HTC strongly recommends that families with young children, older adults and anyone with chronic health issues retain a reliable landline connection.

In addition to the issues mentioned above, wireless phone service is not a sound replacement for landline phone service. Essentially, wireless phones work through line-of-sight transmission and if there is something between the phone and the nearest cellular antenna or tower, calls may not be able to be transmitted. Severe weather, building materials and even heavy foliage are just a few of the things that can interfere with signal transmission and render wireless phones ineffective. It is also possible that during a wide-spread power outage, power in your home may be restored before the power to the nearest cellular tower is restored. Conversely, the tower may be put out of service and your home may remain unaffected.

Make sure to check back here next week to read the final entry of the three-part installment on the importance of landline phones.

Best,

Tom

Over the next three weeks, I'll be using this space to relate the reasons it is important keep your landline phone service.

Perhaps more than most areas, Horry County is susceptible to emergency situations and adverse weather conditions with tropical storms and hurricanes in summer and fall, and the possibility of ice storms in winter. Due to these factors, there are several things to consider before disconnecting landline phone service in favor of voiceover Internet protocol (VoIP)/digital or wireless service.

With VoIP and wireless services becoming more popular, we here at HTC are speaking up to warn potential digital users about the disadvantages this service offers in the wake of natural or man-made disasters.

Through simple use of both products and research, it has been demonstrated that landline phones provide much better service than digital and wireless phones. For phone service, landlines cannot be surpassed when it comes to power outages, 911 emergency calls, alarm monitoring services and call quality.

Reason One: Power Outages

Digital phones and other equipment (phone adapters, routers, etc.) need to be electrically powered, which makes it a big problem when there is an extended power outage. While some digital phones are equipped with battery back-up, they cannot compare with a corded landline phone which is line-powered by the network and has no dependency on the power supply in a home or office. In situations such as hurricanes, it is important to remember that even once the storm has passed, it can be several days to weeks before power is fully restored.

Make sure to check back here next week to read the second of this three-part installment on the importance of landline phones.

Best,

Tom

As we're heading into the holiday season, I wanted to share with you what HTC is doing to help you with your gift list.

Every Saturday between now and Christmas, our retail locations at Town Centre at Carolina Forest, North Myrtle Beach and Myrtle Beach will be open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. for your convenience. In addition, our Coastal Grand Mall location will be open during mall hours.

You can celebrate the holidays at these locations by enjoying complimentary refreshments (while supplies last) and check out current HTC product specials like 50 percent off new Horizon Wireless quick messaging phones and NetRacer high-speed Internet as low as $14.95 per month.

Customers who add a service before Christmas will receive complementary tickets to Brookgreen Gardens' Nights of a Thousand Candles. In addition, one lucky individual each week will be the winner of a $100 Visa gift card. And for football fans, a grand prize drawing will be held on December 16 for four tickets to the Meineke Car Care Bowl, which is being held in Charlotte December 27. Customers can register to win these prizes at HTC's retail locations.

For more information about our holiday hours and giveaways, click here.

Until next time, feel free to share your thoughts on what's happening at HTC in the "Talk Back" section below.

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us at HTC!

Tom

Here at HTC, we're dedicated to supplying the best possible goods and services to our customers, which is reflected in our more than 50 years of experience in providing reliable communications products such as: cable television service; wireless cell phone service; Internet service; home security monitoring; and home phone service.

And in case you haven't heard, the TV (cable included) industry is making a change for the better on February 17, 2009. On this date, all television stations will begin broadcasting only in digital format, and analog TV users may have some adjustments to make. This switch is required and affects all full powered television broadcasting stations that use an over-the-air signal including local stations such as WPDE, WBTW and WMBF. National channels such as ESPN, HGTV and others are not affected by this switch as they use satellite technology to deliver their signals.

With just four months until the "big switch," there is no need to panic, especially if you're already an HTC customer. Being an HTC customer, you're prepared for the switch and have nothing to worry about due to having HTC Digital Cable in your home, regardless of whether you have an older analog set or a new digital television.

However, if you're reading this and are not an HTC Digital Cable subscriber and are watching television via over-the-air signal with an antenna, you will be affected. To make sure you are prepared, you have a few options. The easiest and most convenient option would be to subscribe to HTC Digital Cable so that we can take care of all the necessary preparation for you. If subscribing to cable is not a viable option, you can also continue to receive your signal with an over-the-air antenna, but you might have to make a few adjustments.

Digital TV (DTV) is a newer form of technology for receiving TV broadcasts. It offers better picture and sound, as well as interactive features like online program guides. Broadcasters are already making the transition, sending TV in both analog and digital formats and some are only broadcasting in digital. TV manufacturers have also prepared for this, meaning you may already have a digital TV and not even know it.

There are certain terms to look for in your TV manual when figuring out if it is digital, such as: • ATSC • Digital Tuner • Digital Receiver • DTV • HDTV

If your TV is labeled "digital ready," this doesn't mean you are safe. It means you will need to buy a digital-to-analog converter box, which costs anywhere from $50 to $75. There's a $40 coupon here to help offset this cost from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, but please be mindful that there may not be enough money to provide enough coupons for everyone. If you plan to buy a converter, get yours ASAP from your favorite electronics retailer.

Here at HTC, we're looking forward to the "big switch."

Until next time, feel free to share your thoughts on what's happening at HTC in the "Talk Back" section below.

Best, Tom

Wow! That's the word that best describes the 2008 HTC Annual Membership meeting, which was held on Tuesday. I sincerely hope everyone enjoyed themselves.

The meeting was chock full of entertainment, giveaways and information booths detailing the plethora of communications products HTC provides to our customers. In all, more than 2,500 members of the Cooperative took part in the event and were rewarded for their attendance with two $2 bills, great entertainment from "Dino's TV Variety Show" tribute and loads of great door prizes.

As a part of the night's events, HTC raffled off more than 25 prizes for members in attendance, with the grand prize being a four-day/three-night cruise for two to the Bahamas. This great grand prize was won by Judith Davis of Longs, S.C. and all of us at HTC wish her a relaxing vacation!

In business news from the meeting, Kevin Elliott, Betty F. Jordan and Charles Whaley were all unanimously reelected to serve another term on HTC's board of directors.

The annual meeting is a great benefit of being a member of the Cooperative. It allows members to be involved in helping shape and form the future of your organization. Cooperatives such as HTC are truly a democratic institution, and we are proud to be able to not only provide great products, but also help foster the American democratic process.

I'd like to thank everyone who helped to make this year's meeting such a success. From the loyal HTC staff that helped plan and coordinate the event, to the Myrtle Beach Convention Center for the space to hold the event, to "Dino's TV Variety Show" for the entertainment, thank you all.

With this year's annual meeting behind us, we're excited about moving forward into 2009 and continuing to provide members with the excellent products and services they've come to expect from HTC.

Until next time, feel free to share your thoughts on what's happening at HTC in the "Talk Back" section below.

Best, Tom

Since my last post, I hope that many of you have had the chance to check out HTC's new Towne Centre location in Carolina Forest. If not, you can view the store by clicking here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGyH6SE4rXI or go by in person.

As for what's new at HTC, we're gearing up for the 2008 Annual Membership Meeting, which takes place Tuesday, October 21 at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center. Beginning with registration at 5 p.m., entertainment kick off at 5:15 p.m., and the cooperative members-only business meeting at 7 p.m., we're looking forward to a great evening.

As part of the night's events, giveaways will be taking place for all eligible cooperative members. Prizes up for grabs include a flat screen television, Garmin GPS unit, HTC gift certificates, Lowes Home Improvement gift certificates, cash and a four-day/three-night cruise for two to the Bahamas. Also, two $2 bills will be given to every single HTC member who registers prior to the beginning of the business meeting. We're also looking forward to this year's entertainment, which will be provided by "Dino's TV Variety Show." "Dino's" is one of the most engaging and interactive tribute show experiences along the Grand Strand. The business portion of this year's meeting will include the election of directors for the Socastee, Floyds and Murrells Inlet districts.

If you're a member of the cooperative, you should have received your 2008 Annual Report in the mail in early September. The report details the current happenings at HTC, as well as a detailed look at the year's financials. It also includes your ticket to attend this year's Annual Meeting.

We're excited about this year's Annual Meeting and hope you can join us! For more information about the meeting or if you didn't receive your Annual Report, please call 365-2151.

Until next time, feel free to share your thoughts on what's happening at HTC in the "talk back" section below.

Best, Tom

At HTC, we are excited to announce the opening of our 10th retail location. Situated in Carolina Forest, HTC's new Towne Centre is located at the intersection of Carolina Forest Boulevard and River Oaks Drive.

This new location provides convenient access to HTC products and services including cable television service, HTC Horizon wireless cell phone service, HTC NetRacer Internet service, HTC GateKeeper home security monitoring and reliable HTC home phone service for residents of Carolina Forest.

A full-service source for all telecommunications and entertainment services, our Towne Centre location features nearly 1,500 square feet of retail space, a drive-thru for bill payment, an HTC Horizon wireless live bar which features the latest phones and PDAs, as well as an HDTV and home theater display. It also has a NetRacer high-speed Internet demo area and is Wi-Fi capable. In addition to these great customer-centric features, there is also a multipurpose room for meetings, seminars and community events.

Towne Centre also makes it convenient for customers to visit by offering extended hours Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

In order to welcome Carolina Forest residents and other area HTC customers to the Towne Centre, HTC is hosting a week of grand opening festivities which include the following:

Monday – Saturday, September 22-27: New HTC Horizon wireless customers entering into a new service agreement receive a free Samsung 737 or Sony Ericsson w580i phone with free activation. Everyone who comes to the Towne Center can also register to win a tailgating gift pack which includes a $250 gas card, tent, Coleman grill, Myrtle Beach Pelicans baseball tickets, CCU football tickets and more.

Friday, September 26, 10 a.m.: HTC will be hosting a grand opening/ribbon-cutting ceremony featuring HTC employees, area dignitaries and Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce representatives. A reception will immediately follow the ribbon cutting ceremony.

Saturday, September 27, 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.: The final day of our week-long Towne Centre celebration will feature free food, live entertainment by Ed Dennis, an appearance from McGruff the Crime Dog and Myrtle Beach Pelicans mascot Splash.

For more information about Towne Centre or this week's events, please call 365-2154.

Until next time, feel free to let me know your thoughts on what's happening at HTC.

Best, Tom