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TDS History

Since it began providing local telephone service in 1969 in Wisconsin with 10 small telephone companies, TDS now provides wireless, local and long-distance and broadband services. Operating in 36 states through its business units U.S. Cellular and TDS Telecom, the company today provides telecommunications services to more than 7 million customers.

Read on for a look at how TDS grew from its small beginnings to the FORTUNE 500 company it is today. Or, click on one of the links below to go to a specific decade of TDS history.

1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s


1960s
1969: TDS begins operations as a provider of local wireline telephone services by LeRoy T. Carlson and consists of 10 small, rural-Wisconsin telephone companies.

1970s
1970: The company is renamed Telephone and Data Systems, Inc., as founder LeRoy T. Carlson foresees the critical role that digital data will play in the telecommunications industry.
1974: With the acquisition of additional companies, TDS grows into a company with four distinct regions: Wisconsin, the Northeast, the Southeast and the Mid-Central region.
TDS pays its first dividend. Since then, the company has paid dividends on a quarterly basis, increasing the annual dividend price annually since 1975.
TDS grows to 39 companies serving 205 communities in 17 states.
1975: TDS reaches 100,000 subscribers.
1976: LeRoy T. Carlson leads a contingent of TDS officials to Japan, where the company purchases its first four electronic switching systems. TDS expands from a traditional telephone service provider to a telecommunications company.
TDS acquires Suttle Press and relocates the printing company from Lawrenceville, Ill. to Waunakee, Wis.
1979: TDS begins its second decade with 47 local offices and more than 171,100 telephones in service. Of its lines in service, which are primarily in rural areas where party lines were common, 76 percent are single-party lines.
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1980s
1981: TDS is listed on the American Stock Exchange (AMEX), where the shares trade under the ticker 'TDS'; one million shares are sold.
LeRoy T. Carlson, Jr. becomes president of TDS. LeRoy T. Carlson remains chief executive officer and chairman of the TDS board of directors.
1983: U.S. Cellular is founded as a cellular-telephone-service subsidiary of TDS.
1985: TDS Telecom's local telephone operations begin the year with 59 local offices and 188,000 access lines in 22 states.
1986: LeRoy T. Carlson, Jr. becomes president and chief executive officer of TDS.
1988: U.S. Cellular becomes a public company in an initial public offering of 2.5 million shares. The company is traded on the American Stock Exchange under the stock ticker 'USM.'
TDS Telecommunications Corporation, TDS's local wireline telecommunication service, is formed. TDS Telecom, as it is known, is a fully owned subsidiary of TDS.
1989: In its 20th year in service, TDS is the nation's eighth largest cellular company, the eighth largest paging company, and a mid-sized telecommunications business with 74 local offices in 27 states serving 264,000 access lines.
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1990s
1990: James Barr III is named president of TDS Telecom.
1993: As TDS celebrates 25 years of operations, it has grown into a company that provides service to more than 1 million telephone, cellular and paging customers.
1994: TDS Telecom acquires USLink, a long-distance telephone company operating in North Dakota and Minnesota, as part of an acquisition. USLink later becomes part of TDS Telecom's competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC) operations.
1995: U.S. Cellular grows to 500,000 subscribers and activates its 1,000th cell site.
1996: The Telecommunications Act of 1996 is enacted. With the Act, the Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) concept is introduced, allowing new competitive local telephone companies to compete against the established telecommunications providers, using certain network elements of the local incumbent provider, to provide voice and data communications services. The term "Incumbent Local Exchange Carrier" (ILEC) is created to refer to the independent local telephone companies that formerly had the exclusive right and responsibility for local transmission and switching services in a designated service territory. Rural ILECs, of which TDS Telecom is one, are excluded from having to provide CLEC access to their network elements.
U.S. Cellular signs on its one-millionth subscriber.
Aerial Communications, a TDS subsidiary, goes public in an initial public offering.
1997: TDS Telecom forges an agreement with EchoStar that allows customers to purchase DISH Network™ satellite TV service through TDS Telecom.
1998: American Paging, previously a TDS subsidiary, merges into TSR Wireless Holdings, a private company.
TDS Metrocom begins operations as TDS Telecom's CLEC subsidiary.
U.S. Cellular activates its two-millionth customer and reaches its 2,000 cell-site milestone.
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2000s
2000: TDS Telecom introduces digital subscriber line (DSL) service.
John E. "Jack" Rooney is named president and chief executive officer of U.S. Cellular.
U.S. Cellular signs on its three-millionth customer.
Aerial is merged into VoiceStream.
2001: TDS Telecom merges with Chorus Communications Group.
Suttle Press acquires Straus Printing Company; the company changes its name to Suttle-Straus, Inc.
2002: LeRoy T. Carlson is named chairman emeritus of the TDS board of directors. Walter C.D. Carlson is appointed chairman.
TDS Telecom acquires Merrimack County Telephone, Inc. (MCT) and Telecommunication Systems of New Hampshire, Inc.
U.S. Cellular enters the Chicago market less than four months after acquiring the Chicago metropolitan trading area (MTA) .
U.S. Cellular reaches its four-millionth customer mark and activates its 3,000th cell site.
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2003: TDS celebrates 35 years of providing high-quality, reliable telecommunications service.
U.S. Cellular acquires naming rights to Chicago White Sox ballpark. Formerly known as “Comiskey Park,” the stadium is officially renamed "U.S. Cellular Field."
U.S. Cellular and Cingular (formerly AT&T Wireless) exchange wireless assets. U.S. Cellular receives new spectrum in markets next to or overlapping existing operations in 13 states in exchange for its Georgia and northern Florida licenses. U.S. Cellular builds and launches 12 new markets from the transaction's assets over the next two years, including Oklahoma City and St. Louis.
U.S. Cellular launches easyedgeSM, its suite of wireless data services.
2004: U.S. Cellular divests its South Texas markets.
TDS Telecom launches TDS ePay, its online account viewing and management system.
Market share for DSL in TDS Telecom's ILEC markets that offer the high-speed data service surpasses that of cable modem, only four years after TDS Telecom began offering DSL service.
2005: U.S. Cellular reaches its five-million customer milestone.
  TDS pays a special common share dividend, effectively doubling the number of shares of TDS outstanding common stock.
U.S. Cellular enters the St. Louis market. St. Louis becomes the second largest market U.S. Cellular serves, after Chicago.
U.S. Cellular introduces SpeedTalkSM, its walkie-talk-like service.
2006: U.S. Cellular acquires the remaining 5/6 of TN RSA3 in Central Tennessee. Strengthening footprint.
2007: U.S. Cellular purchases IA RSA 15 in Northwest Iowa. Strengthens footprint.

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