OPASTCO, NTCA Agree to Merger
The NTCA and OPASTCO, the two major associations representing rural wireline carriers, are combining effective March 1, both groups said Wednesday. Merger talks were under way for some time, said executives of other associations. The new group will be called “NTCA, The Rural Broadband Association.” John Rose, longtime OPATSCO president, is retiring at the end of February, an OPASTCO spokeswoman said.
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"Rural telecom companies have dedicated themselves to rural communities and consumers for many years,” said NTCA CEO Shirley Bloomfield. “As telecommunications has changed, so have these small, independent companies. The unification of our organizations is another step in the evolution."
"Usually when two associations merge like that, it’s because they have some synergies and it’s to build on having a larger membership coming together,” said an executive from another telecom association. “A lot of times when you have senior leadership that has a long legacy with an organization and they're ready to move on ... membership and boards often think about how do they replace that and what their options are.”
The merger reflects the competitive pressures facing small carriers, many of which are struggling to stay solvent in an era of consolidation, another association executive said. “A lot of things are changing,” the executive said. “The more dominant the two larger carriers get ... the more difficult it is to complete. I think they see the writing on the wall. I think there’s going to be a lot of members who will not survive the next three years."
NTCA was formed in 1954, growing out of the telephone committee of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, according to the group’s website (http://xrl.us/boe9kq). OPASTCO dates to 1963. Both groups have been meeting together this week in Orlando, Florida, in the first Rural Telecom Industry Meeting & EXPO (http://xrl.us/boe9mi).