Panora Fiber staff, Shane Murphy, Mike Moore, Curtis Thornberry, Geri Thompson, Andrew Randol, Nathan Van Zee, Dave Garland, Andy Carson, Paul Brewster, Kevin Baldwin, Zach Davis, Pam Klinkefus and Bill Dorsett.
Company rolls out Fiber TV+ streaming alternative
By Shane Goodman | Times Vedette
Panora Fiber held its annual business meeting on March 11 at the Panora Community Center, starting at 6 p.m. This was the formal business meeting for the two corporations, Panora Communications Cooperative and Panora Cooperative Cablevision Association, Inc. Both companies are served by the same board of directors. Ron Reynolds serves as the board president of Panora Communications Cooperative and Dave Ryan serves as the board president of Panora Cooperative Cablevision Association, Inc.
Two board members, Lynnea Andersen and LeRoy Oxley, were recommended and re-elected by the membership at the meeting. Oxley has served on the board for 12 years and Andersen for nine years.
Andrew Randol, general manager/CEO, provided financial updates on both companies, also giving recognition to the staff, which he said provides “269 collective years of employment, which translates to 19 years per person.”
Randol commented how the managed Wifi continues to grow and that texting services will be added for those who prefer paperless billings and electronic appointment notices.
Randol also noted how the number of cable TV subscribers continues to decline, dropping from 572 in 2022 to 510 in 2023. He said the subscriber count was more than 1,500 at its peak. He also shared how programming costs continue to increase, now accounting for 80 cents of every dollar. Randol shared how the company will be replacing its traditional cable TV offerings with a new streaming program called Panora Fiber TV+.
Curtis Thornberry, technology development director, provided a demonstration on how the Panora Fiber TV+ application works and addressed questions from those in attendance. He explained how Panora Fiber TV+ is the streaming alternative to cable TV service, noting how subscribers can watch Fiber TV+ using the streaming devices already connected to their TVs, such as Amazon Fire TV, Roku or Apple TV. Thornberry noted how those without streaming devices can purchase them in the Panora Fiber Tech Center and will receive help from staff on how to get started. Both Randol and Thornberry assured those in attendance that staff will assist subscribers through the transition. More details can be found at www.panorafiber.com.
Panora Fiber board of directors, front row, Lynnea Andersen, Chris Arganbright and Trudy Hastings; back row, Dave Ryan, Ron Reynolds, LeRoy Oxley and Kelvin Hafner