GVTC Corporate Overview
GVTC began more than half a century ago as a telephone cooperative with the purpose of providing modern phone service to remote parts of the Texas Hill Country and other rural areas to the north of San Antonio.
Today, GVTC has evolved into a comprehensive communications provider with offerings that go well beyond residential and business telephone service. The products and services also include cable TV, high-speed Internet, security, long distance, advanced data services and more.
GVTC remains true to its roots as a cooperative. In fact, it is the largest telephone cooperative in Texas, whose service area spans 2,000 square miles and eleven counties.
GVTC's product diversity is a reflection of its long history of technical innovation. In the 1980s, it became the first telephone cooperative in Texas to offer cable TV and security system options. In the 1990s, GVTC was the first telephone cooperative to install fiber optic lines between its central offices. Today, GVTC's expanding services also include High Definition TV, Digital Video Recorder, Video on Demand, local and unlimited long-distance calling plans, voice mail systems, Fiber-To-The-Home technology (FTTH), Fiber-To-The-Business (FTTB) service, and Voice over its cable system for Boerne residents.
Despite its growth, GVTC maintains a high level of accountability to its customers and strong ties to the communities where they live.
GVTC is a non-profit entity, and as such, any telephone-related revenues over and above its operating expenses are allocated to its member-owners in the form of Capital Credits. The allocations are made on a proportional share, based upon the dollar volumes that each individual member spends on telephone services with the cooperative. The more telephone services and products the members purchase from their cooperative, the greater the members' allocation will be.
Each year, the GVTC Board of Directors reviews the financial status of the cooperative to determine whether a payment can be made to retire a portion of the capital credits previously allocated to its member-owners, and if so, how much. They strive to operate in a prudent business manner so that the member-owners will continue to have the very best communication service possible at the lowest cost consistent with good financial stewardship and sound management practices.
The cooperative is also committed to providing its member-owners with superior customer service. GVTC representatives are highly accessible. Customers can call, e-mail, or visit them in person. Unlike other companies where customer service representatives are located in another state, it is always possible to speak face-to-face with someone at one of the cooperative's three customer care stores conveniently located within GVTC's service area.
GVTC maintains a strong bond with surrounding communities. GVTC's employees live, work and raise families alongside many of the people they serve. This connection is the motivation behind GVTC's ongoing community outreach. Donations to non-profit organizations, participation in chambers of commerce, support of scholarships for rural students, and offering discounts to schools and libraries are just some of the ways in which GVTC fulfills its responsibilities as a corporate citizen.
GVTC's combination of personalized customer relations, community involvement and technological diversity sets it apart from competitors in the telecommunications field. GVTC's products and services give it the capacity to meet all residential and commercial communications needs, while its history and strong roots provide the foundation for a lasting connection and deep commitment to the people that it serves.
