Jackson Free Press

Local Wireless Companies Gets High-Speed Service
C Spire Wireless, a Ridgeland-based cell-phone service provider, plans to offer the latest generation of broadband service, dubbed, 4G LTE mobile broadband services, starting in September.

The company will begin offering the high-speed mobile broadband in markets in Mississippi, including the Jackson metro area, the Gulf Coast and other cities around the state.

The new service will affect four out of every 10 customers and businesses in Mississippi, a statement from the company said. This will be the first time that this high-speed wireless technology will be widely available in Mississippi.

The new technology will cost C Spire about $60 million initially to put the service in 20 markets by fall, but the company plans to expand and upgrade its 4G LTE coverage in the future.

"We've been aggressively deploying fiber optic cable, installing enhanced backhaul connections and microwave rings, and adding network capacity to hundreds of cell sites in anticipation of the launch," David Smith, vice president of network engineering, said in the statement.

Export Opportunities Focus of Conference
Small businesses that want to learn more about international trade can attend this year's Gulf States Trade Alliance Export Conference.

The alliance includes economic-development agencies from Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Louisiana. The conference, which will be held in Biloxi, is meant to help small businesses from those states connect with resources to expand their markets through trade and export, according to a statement from the Mississippi Development Authority, one of the sponsors of the conference.

This year, the conference will focus on markets in Canada, Central America and the Caribbean, with some of the speakers traveling from Panama, Costa Rica, Trinidad and Tobago and the Dominican Republic.

Financial assistance is available for small businesses to send people to the conference. For more information, visit mswtc.org or call the Mississippi World Trade Center at 601-353-0909.

Millsaps Alumni Magazine Gets Award
Millsaps Magazine, a publication for alumni, parents of students and donors to Millsaps College, recently received a Special Merit Award from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.

Millsaps redesigned its magazine last spring and received the award in February.