RCN
With humble beginnings back in 1964, RCN brought its Lehigh Valley presence to life originally operating as Twin County Cable. The company became RCN nearly two decades ago in 1996, and has worked ever since to deliver high quality communications and entertainment services to the residents and businesses of the Lehigh Valley.
“Our customers come first at RCN and we work to offer them the fastest internet, the best HD television entertainment, and the clearest voice services available anywhere,” says Sanford Ames, Jr., VP and General Manager, RCN Pennsylvania. “One development of which we are very proud is our increased internet speeds. We believe very strongly that we offer the best high-speed internet in the Valley.”
“We are proud to call Lehigh Valley home, and we have done so for the past 50-plus years.”
– Sanford Ames, Jr., VP and General Manager, RCN Pennsylvania
RCN also operates in other major U.S. cities, including New York City, Boston, Chicago, Washington, DC, and Philadelphia. The company constantly works to adopt new technology ahead of the curve, introducing fiber optics to transport video and data on the company’s wholly owned fiber-rich network. In addition to offering internet, digital TV, and phone, RCN provides specialized services such as On Demand programming and RCN2GO, affording customers the convenience of accessing and watching hundreds of shows and programming anywhere they can access the Internet, such as a laptop or PC.
A Proud Legacy of Service
Numerous major milestones and community outreach projects position RCN as a reliable provider of services and a strong community partner in the Lehigh Valley. In its earliest days, RCN acquired Liberty Cable with a plan to expand into the New York City region and forged joint ventures with Boston Edison and Potomac Electric Power Company to move into Boston and Washington, DC, respectively. The company began its full-service fiber-rich network in 1997 and began offering customers attractively bundled suites of services. Expansion continued in the Northeast and also into Chicago starting in 1999, with an acquisition of 21st Century Telecom Group Inc., continuing the fiber footprint. RCN launched its Business Services product between 2004 and 2007, growing its market ever since.
For more than 10 years, RCN has been named Best Internet Provider by various polls. RCN also received accolades as a top Internet provider in PC Mag’s 2013 Reader’s Choice poll. In 2014 alone, RCN participated in or sponsored 130 events in the state of Pennsylvania and RCN TV produced an impressive 400+ remote and in-studio broadcasts. The company is also proud of its close ties with its customers and businesses in the Lehigh Valley and commits itself to living up to the strong, reliable reputation RCN has built over the years.
Perhaps one of the greatest bragging rights for RCN, though, is its staff. More than 300 employees based in the Lehigh Valley strive to make customers happy every day, knowing RCN’s customers are their neighbors, family and friends. These staff members have impressive skill sets and knowledge in all that they do, amassing a tremendous 2,781 years of combined experience in their roles with the company.
“We are proud to call Lehigh Valley home, and we have done so for the past 50-plus years,” says Ames, Jr. “Our RCN staff represents the best of the best. They contribute in the many areas of expertise needed to make the company run smoothly. Because of them, we can bring our customers the best technology possible in the world of Internet, digital TV and phone services, and also on the business side, where we serve small/medium and enterprise-sized businesses.”
Visions for the Future
RCN pledges to put customers first in all that the company does every single day. The core mission statement contains four tenets – Take care of the customer, Take care of each other, Do what you say you are going to do, and Have fun. This corporate mission statement guides the company’s decision-making and overall business practices in all day-to-day operations and will continue to pave the way into the future.
RCN knows that the telecommunications field is a dynamic and ever-changing industry and works tirelessly to ensure they anticipate customers’ needs for the best network and available services both now and in the future. The company also pledges to maintain exceptional customer service and heartfelt involvement in the Lehigh Valley community.
Embracing the Community
RCN’s team dedicates itself to the community in many ways, participating in numerous events and volunteering with various charitable organizations throughout the year. RCN supports and sponsors other events and organizations as well with donations of time and resources. Some key beneficiaries include the Celtic Classic, The Great Allentown Fair, the Downtown Bethlehem Association, The Lehigh Valley Zoo, DaVinci Science Center, the State Theatre, Children’s Home of Easton, Zoellner Arts Center, Via of the Lehigh Valley, Miller-Keystone Blood Center, and dozens more. RCN employees have also worked hard to support local food drives, sporting goods drives, and pet supply drives, not to mention the Super Bowl Soup Drive and Volunteer Center of the Lehigh Valley’s Holiday Hope Chest campaign, donating gifts for underprivileged children.
For the past 30 years, RCN has organized and broadcasted the Dream Come True Telethon to help fulfill the dreams of Lehigh Valley children ages 4 – 17 who are chronically or terminally ill. To date, the company has helped to create special moments and lift the spirits of more than 1,000 children and their families.
“Lehigh Valley is not just where we work,” Ames, Jr. shares. “It is where we live, and where our family and friends live. It is that local pride that inspires many in the RCN family to reach out and help others. One of the greatest attributes of our company is its willingness to serve the community. That is evidenced by the number of RCN employees who show up to volunteer at events, donate time and resources to local charities, and make Lehigh Valley a great place to live.”
