News, Events & Things You Should Know
Attention All PemTel Members:
The PemTel Board of Directors will be presenting a proposed By-Law change at the 2021 PemTel Annual Members
meeting. If this change passes, it will allow members to base their membership on either telephone OR internet
service. This would eliminate the requirement for telephone service for members who only want internet. More
information will be provided over the coming months.
meeting. If this change passes, it will allow members to base their membership on either telephone OR internet
service. This would eliminate the requirement for telephone service for members who only want internet. More
information will be provided over the coming months.
Important Reminder for CATV customers:
August 28, 2020
Dear Valued Member/Subscriber:
Pembroke Telephone Cooperative (PemTel) and its subsidiary, Giles-Craig Communications, Inc. have strived to provide the best possible services at low cost since their beginnings. This has been achieved by closely monitoring costs and keeping expenses low.
The programming/channels that you receive is not given to us, but instead we are required to pay the corporations that own the stations for the right to retransmit them to each subscriber. These retransmission fees are the largest part of the increases you have seen in your bill over the last several years.
As an example of these increases, your local channels were a free service twelve years ago and now it is $21.66 per month as noted on your bill as broadcast station surcharge/retrans. Giles-Craig collects this and then pays it directly to the local stations with no mark-up.
Because of these facts, coupled with decreasing subscribership and technological advances that are constantly evolving, your Board of Directors has decided to discontinue offering Cable Television Services effect December 31, 2020. While this may be a temporary hardship for some, it will serve as an opportunity to lower pricing for broadband service.
Your Cooperative is focused on the future and has opted to pursue the upgrading of its facilities from copper to fiber where possible and to focus on improving broadband to support streaming services. Funding has been secured through the Universal Service Administrative Company to upgrade its facilities in the Newport, Spruce Run, Simmonsville, Maywood, Maybrook and Eggleston areas. Some of this will be fiber to the home technology and other solutions. This project will begin in the fall. We are also pursuing other grants and funding to expand and improve all of our service area.
Membership criteria is being considered for a change from a telephone line requirement to broadband or telephone, the member’s choice. This was going to be presented at the Annual Meeting, but has been delayed until further notice because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Your Board of Directors would like to ask you for your patience as we go through this transition. As this decision has not been made in haste and not taken lightly, it is our sincere belief that it is the right decision, not only concerning technological advances but it is the right financial decision as laid out in our Core Values.
Sincerely,
Your Board of Directors for Giles-Craig Communications, Inc.
Important Broadband Announcement:
Pembroke Telephone Cooperative has received an increase in government subsidy to help get higher broadband speeds to a portion of its service area. The government used the data collected from your Cooperative as well as other companies to determine where Broadband deficiencies exist. This data identified that the entire Newport (544) exchange and a portion of the Pembroke (626) exchange did not meet the new definition of broadband, which is 25 Mbps downstream and 3 Mbps upstream.
Your Cooperative’s Board of Directors accepted the offer and have chosen Vantage Point, an engineering firm based in Mitchell, SD, to perform the engineering work required for this project. You may have seen them getting the GPS coordinates and address data required to facilitate this process.
Construction on this project is slated to begin some time before year end. Subscribers who live in an area where fiber-to-the-home will be offered will receive a letter providing additional information before the service is ready to be deployed.
Broadband is evolving to be the medium by which other services are being delivered all over the world. And it is our mission to provide affordable, quality communications services to meet the needs of our subscribers.
Your Cooperative’s Board of Directors accepted the offer and have chosen Vantage Point, an engineering firm based in Mitchell, SD, to perform the engineering work required for this project. You may have seen them getting the GPS coordinates and address data required to facilitate this process.
Construction on this project is slated to begin some time before year end. Subscribers who live in an area where fiber-to-the-home will be offered will receive a letter providing additional information before the service is ready to be deployed.
Broadband is evolving to be the medium by which other services are being delivered all over the world. And it is our mission to provide affordable, quality communications services to meet the needs of our subscribers.
Urgent Reminder about our Business Office:
In an effort to help keep our subscribers and employees safe, our business office remains closed. Our drive-thru is open during normal business hours and can process your transactions. We encourage use of our night depository and online bill payment services when possible during this time. Thank you!
Important Notice Regarding Online Payments:
Please note that as of June 28, 2020, older browsers may be unable to access our online payment system. This is due to security protocols that are in place for the protection of your private information. If you attempt to access our site and are unable to, please switch to a modern browser and try again.
In addition, older operating systems may also experience problems with this new protocol. If you are using Windows 7 or previous, you may need to access the site using a modern browser.
To determine if your browser is compliant with the new TLS 1.2 security protocols, please go to:
https://clienttest.ssllabs.com:8443/ssltest/viewMyClient.html
In addition, older operating systems may also experience problems with this new protocol. If you are using Windows 7 or previous, you may need to access the site using a modern browser.
To determine if your browser is compliant with the new TLS 1.2 security protocols, please go to:
https://clienttest.ssllabs.com:8443/ssltest/viewMyClient.html
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Scholarships
Pembroke Telephone Cooperative will award one (1) $1000.00 Scholarship to a Graduating High School Senior who is planning to attend a two or four year college. Payment will be made $500.00 per semester for (2) semesters and will be sent directly to the educational institution upon receipt of verification of enrollment for that semester. The student should submit verification directly to our office.
Scholarship will be awarded to a student whose parent/parents are full-time residents of the 626 or 544 telephone service areas, have had a Membership in good standing with the Cooperative for more than one (1) year and are currently subscribing to telecommunications services from PemTel.
This includes eligible Graduating Seniors from area high schools as well as those who are being Home Schooled.
Selection will be made based on: Need, High Achievement, Leadership and Activities. Winners will be chosen by the Pembroke Telephone Cooperative Scholarship Committee.
Children of PTC Employees and Directors are not eligible.
Scholarship will be awarded to a student whose parent/parents are full-time residents of the 626 or 544 telephone service areas, have had a Membership in good standing with the Cooperative for more than one (1) year and are currently subscribing to telecommunications services from PemTel.
This includes eligible Graduating Seniors from area high schools as well as those who are being Home Schooled.
Selection will be made based on: Need, High Achievement, Leadership and Activities. Winners will be chosen by the Pembroke Telephone Cooperative Scholarship Committee.
Children of PTC Employees and Directors are not eligible.
Late Charges
Payments must reach our office by the due date to avoid late fees. Payments made via USPS mail, payments made by your bank on your behalf, payments made at The National Bank, etc. sometimes require several days for processing before reaching our business office. If these payments do not reach our office by the due date, they are considered late regardless of the date you made the payment, Therefore it is important to make your payment in such a way that it reaches our office on or before that date to avoid incurring late payment charges.
Failure to receive a bill does not exempt your account from late charges. Call our office at (540) 626-7111 for more information.
Failure to receive a bill does not exempt your account from late charges. Call our office at (540) 626-7111 for more information.
Accessibility Statement
Giles-Craig Communications Inc. qualifies for a waiver from the FCC that relieves Giles-Craig Communications Inc. of the requirement to ensure that on-screen text menus and guides for the display or selection of multichannel video programming provided by navigation devices that it leases or sells are audibly accessible in real-time upon request by individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Therefore, customers who are blind or visually impaired using Giles-Craig Communications Inc. will not be able to audibly access any of the functions in the display or selection of multichannel video programming via on-screen text menus and guides. Other television providers in your area may offer navigation devices with audibly accessible features. For more information, contact Giles-Craig Communications Inc. at 540-544-2288 or pembroke@pemtel.net.
Robocalls
What is a Robocall?
If you answer the phone and hear a recorded message instead of a live person, it's a Robocall.
What can I do to stop Robocalls?
The FCC requires telemarketers to allow you to "opt out" of receiving calls. Robocalls are required to include a number that you can call to be removed from their lists. You can also register your telephone number on the National Do Not Call Registry.
Where can I get more information?
More information about Robocalls and what you can do to stop them is available on the following websites:
FCC Cutting off Robocalls
FCC Stop Unwanted Calls, Texts and Faxes
National Do Not Call Registry
FTC Robocalls/Consumer Information
If you answer the phone and hear a recorded message instead of a live person, it's a Robocall.
What can I do to stop Robocalls?
The FCC requires telemarketers to allow you to "opt out" of receiving calls. Robocalls are required to include a number that you can call to be removed from their lists. You can also register your telephone number on the National Do Not Call Registry.
Where can I get more information?
More information about Robocalls and what you can do to stop them is available on the following websites:
FCC Cutting off Robocalls
FCC Stop Unwanted Calls, Texts and Faxes
National Do Not Call Registry
FTC Robocalls/Consumer Information
Phishing Schemes:
Dear PemTel Subscribers:
It’s never been more important to actively protect your personal information! Criminals often use elaborate tactics to get you to reveal information like passwords, bank account numbers, credit card numbers, etc.
These criminals may send e-mails, instant messages or even call pretending to be someone from a bank, a credit card company or even the Internal Revenue Service! They may try to tell you that you have to update your personal information, but it’s a trick! You should never give this type of personal information out! PemTel, nor any other reputable company, would ever ask you for information that they already have.
In some other cases, emails will state that you have won an award, or a free vacation, etc. They may ask you to click on the links provided in the email to claim your prize. Clicking these links can then jeopardize the security of your computer and the information stored on it. Don’t do it! If you receive an email or phone call offering you something that seems too good to be true, it is probably a scam!
Another scam involving Internet and computer services begins with an individual calling you to advise you that your computer is infected with a virus which they offer to fix it for a fee. They may claim to be with some well known company. They may ask for your credit card as payment and will ask you to install a piece of software that allows them to control your computer. This is a scam! Following their instructions gives them access to your credit card information, your computer and the information stored on it! If you suspect that you have a virus on your computer, consult a reputable professional for assistance!
In order to protect yourself from being a victim of these types of scams, we urge you to use caution and to follow these basic rules:
1. Don't share your personal information, such as passwords, for "verification" purposes, whether be it online or by phone.
2. Keep your anti-virus software up-to-date and install a firewall.
3. Don't click on pop-ups or links in emails unless you know and trust the sender.
4. Use different passwords for different accounts.
Please protect yourself! And contact us at 540-626-7111 if you have any questions. Or report suspicious activities to the Giles County Sheriff’s Office at 540-921-3842.
Sincerely,
PemTel
It’s never been more important to actively protect your personal information! Criminals often use elaborate tactics to get you to reveal information like passwords, bank account numbers, credit card numbers, etc.
These criminals may send e-mails, instant messages or even call pretending to be someone from a bank, a credit card company or even the Internal Revenue Service! They may try to tell you that you have to update your personal information, but it’s a trick! You should never give this type of personal information out! PemTel, nor any other reputable company, would ever ask you for information that they already have.
In some other cases, emails will state that you have won an award, or a free vacation, etc. They may ask you to click on the links provided in the email to claim your prize. Clicking these links can then jeopardize the security of your computer and the information stored on it. Don’t do it! If you receive an email or phone call offering you something that seems too good to be true, it is probably a scam!
Another scam involving Internet and computer services begins with an individual calling you to advise you that your computer is infected with a virus which they offer to fix it for a fee. They may claim to be with some well known company. They may ask for your credit card as payment and will ask you to install a piece of software that allows them to control your computer. This is a scam! Following their instructions gives them access to your credit card information, your computer and the information stored on it! If you suspect that you have a virus on your computer, consult a reputable professional for assistance!
In order to protect yourself from being a victim of these types of scams, we urge you to use caution and to follow these basic rules:
1. Don't share your personal information, such as passwords, for "verification" purposes, whether be it online or by phone.
2. Keep your anti-virus software up-to-date and install a firewall.
3. Don't click on pop-ups or links in emails unless you know and trust the sender.
4. Use different passwords for different accounts.
Please protect yourself! And contact us at 540-626-7111 if you have any questions. Or report suspicious activities to the Giles County Sheriff’s Office at 540-921-3842.
Sincerely,
PemTel