Plains

What Plains does

Plains Cooperative Telephone Association, operating as Plainstel, is a member-owned rural telecommunications cooperative founded in 1953 and headquartered in Joes, Colorado. The company provides 100% fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) internet and landline voice service across approximately 2,000 square miles of eastern Colorado, serving nine cooperative towns (Anton, Cope, Eckley, Idalia, Joes, Kirk, Seibert, Vona, Lindon) plus the Wray area and, more recently, the Burlington, Stratton, and Bethune markets. The FTTH network delivers speeds from 10 Mbps to 1 Gbps symmetric with a stated typical latency of 5ms, and the company offers bundled internet-plus-phone packages, standalone phone service, business IP Centrex systems, managed WiFi via Plume's HomePass platform, and VIPRE PC security as add-ons.

The business model is subscription-based, with residential internet tiers priced from $39.95 to $329.95 per month, business tiers from $59.95 to $349.95 per month, and a 24-month contract structure with a $200 early termination fee. The customer base is primarily rural residential households and small businesses, acquired through a direct-to-consumer motion combining online signup forms, phone-based sales, and in-person visits to the Joes and Wray offices. With 13 staff, the company operates a leanly-resourced cooperative structure, participates in the federal Universal Service Fund, and depends on community engagement (newsletters, Facebook, local school partnerships) for marketing. The company is governed by a member-elected board of directors and operates without external venture or private equity capital.

Name

Plains

Legal name

Plains Communication Services LLC

Website

https://plainstel.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1953

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Plains (Plainstel) is a member-owned rural telecommunications cooperative, founded in 1953, providing 100% fiber-to-the-home internet and phone service across approximately 2,000 square miles of eastern Colorado to residential households and small businesses.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Rural Telecommunications / Fiber Broadband and Voice Services

NAICS

Wired Telecommunications Carriers (517111), Wired and Wireless Telecommunications Carriers (except Satellite) (51711)

SIC

Communications Services, Nec (4899)

akta.pro primary industry

Fiber-to-the-Premises (FTTP/FTTH) Broadband Providers (HDAIABAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Rural Broadband & Cooperative Fiber Operators (HDAIACAG), Rural & Universal Service Fixed Broadband Providers (HDAIABAJ), Rural & Regional ISPs (HDAIADAI)

Keywords

• Fiber broadband internet
• Landline phone service
• Managed wifi services
• Business voip systems
• Rural telecommunications

Headquarters

HQ city

Joes

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Residential Internet Service: Monthly subscription fees for fiber-to-the-home internet service at various speed tiers, bundled with phone service in cooperative area. Router lease add-on available.
2. Business Internet & Voice Service: Monthly subscription fees for business-grade fiber internet and IP Centrex voice services, with multiple speed tiers and optional VoIP features.
3. Residential & Business Phone Service: Monthly landline phone service with optional add-on features (voicemail, caller ID, call waiting, call forwarding, speed dial, three-way calling, etc.) billed as separate line or bundled with internet.
4. Managed WiFi / Router Lease: $7/month router lease fee for managed WiFi equipment, including Plume HomePass app features.
5. PC Security (VIPRE): $4.25/month per household for VIPRE anti-virus and security software, covering up to 3 PCs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Plains (Plainstel) is a member-owned telecommunications cooperative that delivers 100% fiber-to-the-home broadband internet service and landline telephone service to residential and small business customers across a 2,000 square mile service area in eastern Colorado. Internet speeds range from 10 Mbps to 1 Gbps symmetric, and the company supplements its core offering with managed WiFi (Plume HomePass), IP Centrex business phone systems, VIPRE PC security, and Lifeline low-income assistance.

Product overview

Plains (Plainstel) is a telecommunications cooperative providing 100% fiber-to-the-home internet and voice services across eastern Colorado. The company operates as a cooperative, offering a unified portfolio centered on high-speed internet connectivity paired with landline phone service. The core offering includes multiple internet speed tiers (from 10 Mbps to 1 Gbps) bundled with phone service, supplemented by Managed WiFi via Plume's HomePass platform, IP Centrex Business Systems for enterprise communication needs, Vipre PC security protection, and Lifeline low-income assistance programs. The product architecture follows a bundled model where phone service is typically required with internet in cooperative areas, with optional add-ons for enhanced features.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fiber-to-the-Home Internet Service 100% fiber-to-the-home internet service providing high-speed broadband connectivity to residential and business customers in eastern Colorado, with download/upload speeds ranging from 10 Mbps to 1 Gbps symmetric and 5ms typical latency. Multiple speed tiers offered across Cooperative Area, Wray, and Burlington/Stratton/Bethune service areas.
• Phone Service Landline telephone service for residential and business customers with optional add-on features including voicemail, caller ID, call waiting, call forwarding, speed dialing, and three-way calling. Available standalone or bundled with internet service in cooperative areas.
• IP Centrex Business Systems Fully customized IP-based business communication system delivered over Plains' fiber network, offering a full suite of workplace communication features including auto-attendant, voicemail, and extension management tailored to small and medium business needs.
• Managed WiFi (Plume HomePass) Managed WiFi service powered by Plume's HomePass app, providing parental controls, cyber threat protection, and adaptive smart home performance for customers on the router plan. $7/month router lease includes these features.
• VIPRE PC Protection Automated anti-virus/anti-spyware security software offered as a $4.25/month add-on to Plains internet subscribers, providing real-time protection against viruses, worms, Trojans, personal firewall, anti-spyware/adware removal, pop-up blocking, and critical Windows updates for up to 3 PCs per license.
• Lifeline Low-Income Assistance Federal Lifeline benefit program providing discounts on broadband service for qualifying low-income households in Plains' service area to ensure affordable access to telecommunications.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100% Fiber-to-the-Home coverage ensures reliable, high-speed connectivity for rural communities in eastern Colorado.
• +1 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Plume (HomePass)coreTechnology or IntegrationPlume provides the HomePass managed WiFi platform powering Plains' Managed WiFi service. HomePass offers subscribers parental controls, adaptive smart home performance, and protection against cyber threats via a smartphone app integrated with Plains' router infrastructure.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• TDS Telecom: Subsidiary of Telephone and Data Systems providing rural and small-town broadband, voice, and managed services across the U.S. Comparable customer base and product mix, but with a corporate ownership structure and national footprint.
• Consolidated Communications: Larger publicly traded rural and regional fiber provider serving communities across the central and western U.S. Overlaps with Plains in rural fiber broadband and voice, but operates at substantially greater scale and as a corporate (non-cooperative) entity.
• Frontier Communications: National fiber provider with a heavy rural and small-town focus, including in Colorado. Competitor for residential broadband and voice in Plains' general geography, though with substantially more scale and resources.
• Windstream: Larger fiber and broadband provider focused on rural and small-town markets across the U.S. Competes with Plains for residential and small-business customers in rural geographies, but with significantly broader scale.

Direct peers

• Empire Telephone: New York rural cooperative delivering fiber, voice, and broadband services to small upstate communities. Comparable co-op model and rural FTTH deployment, though in a different geography.
• ATC Communications: Indiana-based rural telephone cooperative delivering fiber broadband, voice, and business services to small communities in the Midwest. Directly comparable member-owned co-op with FTTH focus and similar scale.
• Twin Lakes Telephone Cooperative: Tennessee-based rural telephone cooperative offering fiber-to-the-home, voice, and managed WiFi to small communities. Highly comparable member-owned co-op operating in a rural region with similar scale and product mix.
• Range Telephone Cooperative: Wyoming-based rural telephone cooperative providing fiber and voice services to small communities. Closest comparable to Plains in cooperative structure, rural geography, FTTH focus, and customer scale.
• CL Tel (Clear Lake Telephone): Iowa-based rural telephone cooperative providing fiber-to-the-home broadband, voice, and managed services. Directly comparable in cooperative structure, rural geography, and product portfolio.

Emerging players

• Starlink (SpaceX): LEO satellite broadband service from SpaceX, now widely available across rural Colorado. Represents the most credible alternative connectivity option for Plains' residential customers in its 2,000 sq mi service area, potentially compressing pricing power.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/pg/plainstel/about

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Plains