Telephone company gets new leader, technology

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January 26, 2008

By BETHANY KOSMIDER The Press Republican Sun Jan 27, 2008, 12:30 AM EST

CROWN POINT -- Crown Point Telephone Co. saw a number of changes recently, including the retirement of President Patricia Knapp and her daughter assuming the top role.

Knapp, who had been president of the company since 1988, saw the company grow from switchboard operators and crank telephones to the newest technology, Internet broadband service in Crown Point.

Knapp's daughter, Shana Knapp-Macey, was appointed as the new president of the company. Knapp-Macey is the third generation to run the family-owned business.

Knapp-Macey began her career with Crown Point Telephone in 1992, and in 2006 was elected to the New York State Telecommunications Association Board of Directors.

Serving on several sub-committees of the Telecommunications Association, Knapp-Macey advocates on behalf of the state's telecommunications industry in Albany and Washington, D.C.

In conjunction with the change of leadership, both mother and daughter say they've been working hard to bring broadband Internet via digital subscriber line to their customers at competitive prices.

By switching providers and making significant upgrades, the task was accomplished just before Knapp's retirement.

"Competition is the biggest challenge for us," said Knapp-Macey. "Small companies like Crown Point Telephone are now competing with large national cable and television firms offering services as well as large national wireless providers."

Knapp-Macey said there is a misconception that a small company such as Crown Point Telephone can't compete with the latest technologies in the community.

"We wanted to be the first small community to offer DSL service to our customers," said Knapp-Macey.

She said they received Commendation Awards from the State Public Service Commission for 14 consecutive years for their quality of services.

Gov. Eliot Spitzer announced at the New York Farm Bureau annual meeting in Niagara Falls that increased access to broadband service, combined with digital literacy programs, could dramatically improve cultural, social and educational opportunities.

Funds were allocated in the last state budget for grants for accessible Internet for underserved areas of rural New York, including the North Country and the Adirondack Park.

"We utilize 100-percent digital-switching technology and fiber optics in our network," said Knapp-Macey. "Unlike many other rural areas, we offer high-speed DSL broadband service in 100 percent of our service territory."

Knapp-Macey contends larger providers will not come into the community to serve people because they are not willing to invest as extensively as Crown Point Telephone has.

Crown Point Telephone's newly upgraded DSL service is available in tiers with pricing to match. Broadband speeds from 384 kilobytes per second are offered to everyone, and in some locations, 1.5 megabytes per second speeds are attainable, Knapp-Macey said.

Pricing ranges from $32 per month for the lowest speed to $49 a month for the highest speed.

"We want our prices to be competitive and, at the same time, be a very good deal for the customer," said Knapp-Macey.

"We are a part of our community, economically, technologically and socially. We want to make sure Crown Point isn't an underserved rural area. We think Gov. Spitzer would be proud of our efforts."