Columbia, Mo. - The USDA Rural Development's Rural Utilities Service Administrator, Jonathan Adelstein, along with several other state and local officials, visited Socket Telecom, LLC, a Missouri-based telephone and Internet service provider, on Wednesday, May 18, 2011 to discuss the company's current fiber-to-the-home project in Callaway County.

This last-mile project is being funded by a combination loan and grant totaling $23.7 million in federal stimulus funds as a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. 

Administrator Adelstein has been a leading advocate for a substantive national broadband strategy with aggressive goals and specific policy recommendations. "We see broadband investments as platforms for continued economic growth and community development," stated Adelstein. 

Bill Johnson, Director of Administration for Fulton, Mo echoed the sentiment. "We are excited to be able to say yes to businesses asking for 'fiber-ready' sites to build on." 

Janie Dunning, Missouri's State Director USDA Rural Development, Damon Porter, Director of Mo Broadband Now, and Mayor Bob McDavid of Columbia were all in attendance to hear about the project. 

More than 3,000 homes and businesses in rural Callaway County and Fulton, Mo will be impacted by this fiber-optic network. Subscribers will have access to telephone, video and broadband Internet access services at affordable prices. 

"It has always been a part of Socket's mission to offer state-of-the-art technology to rural homes and businesses," said Socket's President, Carson Coffman. "We are already working on plans to expand our fiber footprint to more mid-Missouri areas in the near future. Physical construction on this first project should begin in the next 60-90 days."

For details on Socket's fiber project in Callaway County, visit www.socket.net/fiber.

###

ATTENTION REPORTERS AND EDITORS:

To view all Socket press releases, please visit www.socket.net/press-releases.