Alaska Communications (formerly Alaska Communications Systems or ACS) is a

telecommunications Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that fe ...

corporation headquartered in Anchorage, Alaska. It was the first telecommunications provider in the state of Alaska to maintain a third-generation wireless network and the only provider in Alaska that owned fully incorporated infrastructure for the major telecommunications platforms; wireless communications, Internet networking, and local and long-distance phone service. Alaska Communications wireline operations include advanced data networks and an underwater fiber optic system. The Alaska Communications wireless operations included a statewide 3G

CDMA Code-division multiple access (CDMA) is a channel access method used by various radio communication technologies. CDMA is an example of multiple access, where several transmitters can send information simultaneously over a single communicatio ...

network, and coverage extended from the North Slope to Southeast Alaska.

History

The company was formed in 1998, when

CenturyTel Lumen Technologies, Inc. (formerly CenturyLink) is an American telecommunications company headquartered in Monroe, Louisiana, that offers communications, network services, security, cloud solutions, voice, and managed services. The company is a ...

announced the sale of its Alaska operations (newly acquired from

PacifiCorp PacifiCorp is an electric power company in the western United States. PacifiCorp has two business units: # Pacific Power, a regulated electric utility with service territory throughout Oregon, northern California, and southeastern Washington. ...

) to local management and Fox Paine & Company. In 1999, Alaska Communications acquired Anchorage Telephone Utility from the

Municipality of Anchorage A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

. On February 3, 2014, Alaska Communications announced its purchase of TekMate. On December 4, 2014, GCI Wireless agreed to purchase the wireless assets of Alaska Communications for $300 million. The deal was completed in the first quarter of 2015. In July 2021, Alaska Communications was acquired by the Nasdaq-listed company ATN International Inc. for $343 million.

Current Projects

On May 25, 2017, Alaska Communications announced it will be offering Internet services via

OneWeb OneWeb (legally Network Access Associates Ltd) is a communications company that aims to build broadband satellite Internet services. The company is headquartered in London, and has offices in Virginia, US and a satellite manufacturing facility ...

. Alaska Communications has an agreement with Quintillion to use its submarine fiber optic cable to bring new services to some of Alaska's northernmost communities:

Utqiaġvik Utqiagvik ( ik, Utqiaġvik; , , formerly known as Barrow ()) is the borough seat and largest city of the North Slope Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. Located north of the Arctic Circle, it is one of the northernmost cities and towns in the ...

, Nome,

Kotzebue Kotzebue ( ) or Qikiqtaġruk ( , ) is a city in the Northwest Arctic Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the borough's seat, by far its largest community and the economic and transportation hub of the subregion of Alaska encompassing t ...

Point Hope Point Hope ( ik, Tikiġaq, ) is a city in North Slope Borough, Alaska, United States. At the 2010 census the population was 674, down from 757 in 2000. In the 2020 Census, population rose to 830. Like many isolated communities in Alaska, the c ...

and Wainwright.

Business Technology Center

On June 9, 2016, Alaska Communications opened the Business Technology Center. The meeting space is open to community members, businesses, nonprofits and education organizations. It is located at 600 East 36th Ave, Anchorage, Alaska. BTC8292017

Community work

Alaska Communications supports

United Way United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit fundraising affiliates. United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public, prior to 2016. United Way organizations raise funds ...

Junior Achievement JA (Junior Achievement) Worldwide is a global non-profit youth organization founded in 1919 by Horace A. Moses, Theodore Vail, and Winthrop M. Crane. JA works with local businesses, schools, and organizations to deliver experiential learning ...

, the University of Alaska, 90% by 2020, and FIRST in Alaska. It also partners with Boys & Girls Clubs – Alaska to put on Summer of Heroes, a program which awards scholarships to youth who are engaged in community service.

References

External links

* {{US mobile phone companies Communications in Alaska Companies based in Anchorage, Alaska Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq Telecommunications companies of the United States 1998 establishments in Alaska Telecommunications companies established in 1998 American companies established in 1998