Late last week, the only other reputable wireless ISP (WISP) in our county sold to Skybeam. Texas Communications, whom I have referred many, many customers to is no longer providing internet service. Skybeam, a division of JAB Broadband now owns the wireless internet side of their business.

This means that Brazos WiFi is now the only local WISP with the experience and ability to deliver a fast and reliable service to the countryside. We are happy to have the opportunity to service the areas we already cover and are looking at growth areas. We are not ruling out urban areas any longer. We have found that while some urban areas are pretty well off, others have terrible internet options.

You may ask why you should care about who owns a particular type of business. The reason is that nearly all of the revenue generated via Brazos WiFi stays right here in the Brazos Valley. The revenue generated by the out of town companies (Verizon, SuddenLink, Skybeam, HughesNet, Exede, AT&T, etc) gets sucked out of this community to never return. We live here. We invest here. We want Brazos Valley to grow and prosper.

We have launched a new website to help us identify where people need better internet. This website will allow us to see problem areas that need our attention. Instead of guessing where a new tower needs to go, we will be able to focus with laser precision and bring fast and reliable internet to those areas.

Please visit http://www.ineedbetterinternet.com if you need better internet. Spread the word to those folks you know that are dissatisfied with their internet offerings.

If you fall within our coverage area and are not exited about being a Skybeam customer, give us a ring to get switched over right away

Thank You,
Jim Bouse, Owner of Brazos WiFi

Jeff,

is your technology provided through radio tower or fiber or ...?

thanks

Wow. Definitely not good to hear that. Was never a fan of the Canopy tech that TexComm used but their service was always more reliable than the others (aside from yours of course).

Another one lost to the horror show that is SkyBeam...

Also, will you be doing any fiber deployments in the city? I remember talking to you once about starting to offer that service on the outskirts of the Suddenlink footprint, but is there any chance of fiber deployments in the city?

Oh no! My experience with Skybeam was absolutely horrible, piss-poor customer service combined with a serious lack of consistent up times. I was off-line more than online.

Please get Forest Lakes figured out. We need you. I'm ok with erecting a mast on the roof to make it happen. I really don't want to deal with Skybeam again. I was OK with TexComm's slower service for their reliability and customer service, but this is now a disaster.

plus a Million for Brazos wifi
BTHOpoorconnectionsandslowspeeds

NOOOOOooo! Another Forest Lakes resident here. We just switched to Texas Communications and it is a bazillion times better than what we had. We were happy with Wickson Wireless, but they got bought out by Skybeam. Horrible internet, and even worse customer service.

I'm amazed that our options in FL are so very poor.

A reasonably priced fiber option would drive Suddenlink out of town.

Stucco the only problem is the companies that supply fiber to our great cities know that they have us over a Big Barrel , If Anybody can bring Fiber Reasonably priced would be the op right now, it is still very costly.

We are getting geared up for fiber. I need to get the wireless business a bit larger to be able to bankroll the start of the fiber buildout.

Let your friends and neighbors know that Brazos WiFi is their best option for rural internet. If they live in a urban area, make sure they fill out the survey at http://www.ineedbetterinternet.com so we know where people do need alternatives.

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The revenue generated by the out of town companies (Verizon, SuddenLink, Skybeam, HughesNet, Exede, AT&T, etc) gets sucked out of this community to never return.

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I understand you're trying to bolster your business, but this is disingenuous, at best.

I laugh when people talk about how great it would be to have Google fiber. They talk about why being demographics, market size etc. But those only play a part, the main reason we will never have google or any other fiber here is these that we live in these "great cities". They are bureaucratic quagmires full of self important people trying to build empires. When KC was courting Google they promised and put in place a group that would resolve any permitting or engineering decisions within one hour. If they were hanging cable at 3am and could no meet a separation the city would give them the variance or an acceptable to them alternative answer within 1 hour. And guess what, the did it and its a large part of why the deployment was successful. College Station at least has the reputation with construction firms be it commercial or utilities of being one of the worst in the state as far as approving changes. You want to move a wall 1", or even worse made a mistake and moved it prepare to be red tagged and wait exorbitant times to resolve it. SO when you have no alternatives just remember that where you live is likely a large part of the problem.

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I laugh when people talk about how great it would be to have Google fiber. They talk about why being demographics, market size etc. But those only play a part, the main reason we will never have google or any other fiber here is these that we live in these "great cities". They are bureaucratic quagmires full of self important people trying to build empires. When KC was courting Google they promised and put in place a group that would resolve any permitting or engineering decisions within one hour. If they were hanging cable at 3am and could no meet a separation the city would give them the variance or an acceptable to them alternative answer within 1 hour. And guess what, the did it and its a large part of why the deployment was successful. College Station at least has the reputation with construction firms be it commercial or utilities of being one of the worst in the state as far as approving changes. You want to move a wall 1", or even worse made a mistake and moved it prepare to be red tagged and wait exorbitant times to resolve it. SO when you have no alternatives just remember that where you live is likely a large part of the problem.

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Everything you just mentioned would have been fixed years ago had the voters allowed the TajMajCityHall to be built.

Jim has been great helping me out with a VOIP issue. Top notch company and very responsive.

SkyBeam might be the worst company I've ever dealt with for any product anywhere ever.

we've been a Texas Broadband subscriber for about 4 years now. I've spent most of that time looking for anyone that could replace them because they were pretty inconsistent in the service and too expensive for the speed. But in the past 12-18 months they've made quite a few investments in their product and I now rarely have connectivity problems and when I do they are able to address them quickly. Plus they doubled everyone's bandwidth for the same price which has been a welcome change. Like all WISP providers line of sight is an issue and I have neighbors that can't even get their signal but it's working well for me and given how I use it if it weren't an extremely reliable signal I would know. I connect to remote servers every day and have a VPN connection to an office in San Antonio. When the signal drops I know and it's become very consistent. If Brazos WIFI were to come to south CS (Wellborn) I'd be interested in checking it out. But for now at least we have decent service.

Please Please come out to the Snook/Tunis/Cook's point area!!!!!

Edit: Texas Communications serviced out here, but it was crap. you were lucky to get 1mbps. I am currently using verizon homefusion (4G antenna on home). It is fast, but is capped at 30gigs. My 2 year contract is up this fall, would love to have a better alternative out here.

What about ceo? They show to cover FL and are a local company and Newman 10 winner.

If I made my coverage maps like CEO, I'd cover 100% of the city of Bryan.

Their coverage map shows what they 'could reach' if the person put up a $2000-$10000 tower to clear all the trees and obstructions.

I use an online service to accurately model my coverage area based on the tree height and the standard house height with a roof pole of 25'. CEO knows about this online service but has chosen to be 'overly optimistic' with their maps.

You need to ask yourself why they feel the need to overstate their coverage areas.

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If I made my coverage maps like CEO, I'd cover 100% of the city of Bryan.

Their coverage map shows what they 'could reach' if the person put up a $2000-$10000 tower to clear all the trees and obstructions.

I use an online service to accurately model my coverage area based on the tree height and the standard house height with a roof pole of 25'. CEO knows about this online service but has chosen to be 'overly optimistic' with their maps.

You need to ask yourself why they feel the need to overstate their coverage areas.

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So if I was willing to put up that antenna I wouldn't call you because my assumption would be that you can't reach it while CEO can. They aren't overstating anything. They can reach those areas with their signal. That doesn't mean it's feasible for the customer but why make that decision for them? To me it's a better practice to tell them, "Yes, we can reach your property. However you need to understand that it's going to take a material investment on your part because of the terrain, trees, etc. But if you're willing to make that investment we can provide a signal."

The right approach might be a hybrid where you show what's accessible with normal equipment along with whats accessible with substantially more expensive equipment. That's what Verizon for example does with their 4G LTE map where they show reliable service versus extended service and a brief explanation of the difference. Unfortunately it appears as if neither of you do that but they are closer to what I would prefer to see. You tell me what's possible and I'll decide what fits my budget.

My $.02 if it's worth that.

Great point. The map will be updated soon.

I emailed the folks at Texas Communications and received the following reply. I am near Lake Bryan, on their 6mbps down / 1mbps plan, and purchased a $1200 tower about 8 years ago. I asked how the changeover would affect me and also about the tower I purchased. Here's their reply:

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Yes, the wireless internet portion of our business has been sold. Skybeam will continue to deliver internet service in our area utilizing the same or upgraded euqipment. You purchased the tower at your house. Even if you discontinue service with Skybeam, the tower will stay. Since Skybeam will be using the same equipment, I recommend not switching unless you have an issue they cannot fix. I appreciate you as a loyal customer over the past eight years and hope the transition will be smooth.

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I emailed the folks at Texas Communications and received the following reply. I am near Lake Bryan, on their 6mbps down / 1mbps plan, and purchased a $1200 tower about 8 years ago. I asked how the changeover would affect me and also about the tower I purchased. Here's their reply:

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Yes, the wireless internet portion of our business has been sold. Skybeam will continue to deliver internet service in our area utilizing the same or upgraded euqipment. You purchased the tower at your house. Even if you discontinue service with Skybeam, the tower will stay. Since Skybeam will be using the same equipment, I recommend not switching unless you have an issue they cannot fix. I appreciate you as a loyal customer over the past eight years and hope the transition will be smooth.

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The tower was/is a good investment.

I am hopeful that everyone continues to receive good service but am doubtful that will happen. Skybeam runs very lean on personnel. If there is an issue, I doubt they will be quick to repair. I hope I am wrong and they provide great service to everyone.

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The right approach might be a hybrid where you show what's accessible with normal equipment along with whats accessible with substantially more expensive equipment. That's what Verizon for example does with their 4G LTE map where they show reliable service versus extended service and a brief explanation of the difference. Unfortunately it appears as if neither of you do that but they are closer to what I would prefer to see. You tell me what's possible and I'll decide what fits my budget.
My $.02 if it's worth that.

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Updated: http://www.brazoswifi.com/coverage_areas.html

Thanks for the fantastic suggestion.

Something on your website is causing the firewall at work to block it due to it being a 'gaming site'

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Something on your website is causing the firewall at work to block it due to it being a 'gaming site'

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The entire site? Or just the coverage map portion?

i clicked on your map link above, and got the message. then tried typing in the home page, and got the same message.

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I emailed the folks at Texas Communications and received the following reply. I am near Lake Bryan, on their 6mbps down / 1mbps plan, and purchased a $1200 tower about 8 years ago. I asked how the changeover would affect me and also about the tower I purchased. Here's their reply:

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Yes, the wireless internet portion of our business has been sold. Skybeam will continue to deliver internet service in our area utilizing the same or upgraded euqipment. You purchased the tower at your house. Even if you discontinue service with Skybeam, the tower will stay. Since Skybeam will be using the same equipment, I recommend not switching unless you have an issue they cannot fix. I appreciate you as a loyal customer over the past eight years and hope the transition will be smooth.

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The tower was/is a good investment.

I am hopeful that everyone continues to receive good service but am doubtful that will happen. Skybeam runs very lean on personnel. If there is an issue, I doubt they will be quick to repair. I hope I am wrong and they provide great service to everyone.

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I'm with you here. Skybeam is awful. Truly terrible. If I owned a tower they serviced for my house I wouldn't be switching immediately but I'd have another provider queued up. It's only a matter of time before they fail.

Welp, here's our experience. Received *BILL* from Skynet before the letter announcing change from Texas Communications. Not a great start. That was last Friday. Called their customer service line about an issue with the bill. First message, "Welcome Texas Communications customers to Skynet." Second message, "Areas in Snook, Kurten and portions of Bryan are experiencing an outage. We are aware of it and working to fix it."

Wow.

It gets worse: Multiple outages over the weekend, on-again, off-again service, speeds in the .5 up range, and on and on.

Bad news is, we're in WEST Bryan - near the A&M Health center. Old road off of 47, so our copper wires run to downtown Bryan. No DSL. Have both satellite and now this crap. (Texas Communications has been stable, reliable, and ALWAYS polite and able to fix on either their end or ours for seven years.)

If given the opportunity, our entire street would consider being a test for fiber or at least a candidate for coverage. I've filled out the online form just now. Will try to direct others to do so as well.

Thanks for the feedback.

Our new wireless product passed our tests with flying colors.

The folks in Forest Lakes are our first location to serve with our new 30mbps packages. We have the first install scheduled Monday for the new system.

We also just added a new location in Downtown Bryan which will allow us to reach the West side of town which is something we have been working towards for some time.

Jim

Are you adding new antennas or something for Forest Lakes? I'm off Woodview you looked at my house a couple of months ago and couldn't get to your new antenna (off Elmo Weeden) without setting up a tower for our antenna. Called Texas Comm and they said oh we have faster cheaper service now and upgraded our antenna then dropped like $30 of my monthly bill (why I had to call is beyond me). Then this new company sends me a bill $10 higher and no one is happy with their service. BrazosWiFi I'm definitely interested if you can cover our house.

klockless: We do have a new technology that should allow us to reach into those trees now.

Give us a call and we can get you rescheduled and try again with the new product.

Thanks,
Jim

I'm pretty disappointed. I just called CEO and Nathan is no longer there....

Yep, Skybeam screwed up our first bill as well. Big surprise.

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We also just added a new location in Downtown Bryan which will allow us to reach the West side of town which is something we have been working towards for some time.

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when will the map be updated to reflect this? The largest circle right now looks centered northeast of town. If you get a circle that large centered on downtown, it might reach me just across the Brazos river.

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I've filled out the online form just now. Will try to direct others to do so as well.

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Oh did I miss a link? where is this form?