Paul Bunyan Communications returning over $3 million to members
Paul Bunyan Communications is returning over $3 million to its members in 2024, the cooperative announced recently.
Paul Bunyan Communications is a not-for-profit company. As a cooperative, membership in Paul Bunyan Communications includes the opportunity to share in the financial success of the company. When profits are earned, they are allocated to the members based on their proportional share of the allocable revenues. These allocations may then be returned to the individual members through capital credit retirements.
For current members with a distribution amount of $100 or less, a credit has been applied to their August bill. Checks have been mailed out for distributions of more than $100.
“Our cooperative is thriving, standing as the largest broadband cooperative in Minnesota with over 30,000 active members spread across our 6,000-square-mile service area. We have been diligently building and expanding one of the country’s largest all fiber optic rural Gigabit networks, the GigaZone, transforming how our members live, work and play. It is gratifying to see our efforts paying off and to return profits to our membership,” said Gary Johnson, Paul Bunyan Communications CEO/ general manager.
“For over 70 years, we have been offering the latest technology at cost. Joining Paul Bunyan Communications is free— there are no membership fees or annual dues. Simply subscribe to a local phone line or GigaZone Broadband Internet service and you become a member. You’ll enjoy cutting-edge technology supported by our dedicated team of over 160 local employees who live and work in the communities we serve,” added Dave Schultz, Paul Bunyan Communications chief financial officer.
“In a highly competitive industry with national competitors, our cooperative has thrived by prioritizing our region and members. We focus solely on our local communities, not on customers in places like Sioux Falls, Fargo, or Minneapolis. Our investments stay here, enhancing our network, services and communities in northern Minnesota,” added Brian Bissonette, Paul Bunyan Communications marketing supervisor.
If you were a member of the cooperative in 2003 and/or 2023 and accrued more than $10 in total capital credit allocations, but do not receive the credit on your account or a check by Sept. 1, contact Paul Bunyan Communications at 218-444-1234 or 218-999-1234.