This is a paid piece from Midco.

Simplified: Midco's Fiber Forward investment is underway in Sioux Falls, which means some local customers are already on their way to enjoying next-generation internet speeds. Here's a look at what's next (and when you might be getting faster speeds at your house).

Why it matters

  • The Fiber Forward investment will build a network designed to meet the needs of Sioux Falls customers for the next 20 years, said Ben Dold, senior vice president of operations.
  • Midco announced last summer a $500 million investment in Fiber Forward. Since then, teams have been working to plan out network improvements citywide, including equipment updates and new fiber installation, working from a neighborhood-by-neighborhood approach.
  • Despite some supply chain and labor shortage challenges, Midco's team is on track to have 10G speeds across Sioux Falls by 2025.
"We want to make sure that wherever you live, whatever you do in Sioux Falls, you've got the bandwidth that you need to do it for years to come," Dold said.

What is 10G internet?

If you have Midco's highest speed available, your top speed is currently one gigabit, or 1G.

  • That means one gigabit per second – which, for the non-tech folks in the room, is really fast.
  • Dold said people with gigabit internet today often don't even take full advantage of how fast it really is – due to device limitations and other factors.

10G internet is 10-times as fast as 1G.

  • It's that fast because it's anticipating that, in the future, the need for bandwidth is only going to increase, Dold added. Just think about how many more devices you have that use the internet today than you did even five or 10 years ago.

On the way to 10G, you'll have options to increase your speed package to 2G or 5G, as Midco steadily increases network bandwidth.

What's happening now with Fiber Forward?

Upgrading  means construction across town, including laying new fiber underground in people's yards in certain cases.

"We're basically rebuilding our existing infrastructure in many Sioux Falls neighborhoods," said Bill Kemmis, general manager of construction planning. "In others, we're strengthening the existing connection using what's already there."

But before any construction in your neighborhood, you'll be notified by Midco about what's happening. That may happen in a number of ways, depending on your preferences as a customer, including:

  • Mailers,
  • Door tags,
  • Signs in the neighborhood,
  • Informational cards handed out by contractors,
  • Texts,
  • And emails.

What happens next?

Midco is continuing Fiber Forward in Sioux Falls and across its footprint, including South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Kansas and Wisconsin.