By Jeff Aydelette / Staff Writer

CYBERSPACE – The nonprofit organization that was the first to introduce high-speed Internet into Pamlico County – doing so in high-tech ‘wireless’ fashion – will cease all operations by the end of March.

Pinelink, formally known as Pamlico Information Network Enterprise, or PINE, began operations seven years ago.
Last week, the nonprofit’s board of directors voted to dismantle its Internet backbone, which consists of modems and transmitters mounted on a series of towers spread throughout the county.

The service is still beamed to a handful of customers in areas near Vandemere and Lowland, but those homes and a handful of businesses will soon need to look elsewhere.

In late 2003 and early 2004, telecommunications companies had little interest in rural, sparsely populated Pamlico County. For that reason, a mostly volunteer-run upstart like PINE managed to snare government and private grants intended to build the county’s share of the much-ballyhooed North Carolina information highway.
“You could argue that if it had not been for PINE, the big guys like Embarq and Time Warner would never have seen the potential here,” said Bud Aldridge who will assist his long-time friends Jerry Prescott and Gene Lupton in wrapping up the many loose ends.
According to Lupton, Pinelink customers are urged to turn in their “WaveRider” modems to The County Compass newspaper at 210-B Vandemere Road in Bayboro. The units can be dropped off Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.

“We think there are probably more than a hundred scattered throughout the county,” explained Lupton. “Any equipment we can retrieve will help Pinelink pay off some of the small debts that remain on our books.”

Insiders concede Pinelink was hard-pressed to compete with telecommunications Goliaths like Embarq, recently renamed Century Link. These well-heeled competitors pursued a “low-hanging fruit” strategy, which forced Pinelink to concentrate on isolated, hard-to-reach areas. Economies of scale, treasured by the big boys of the industry, never materialized for the nonprofit that focused only on local customers.

“It really was a David and Goliath situation,” said Aldridge, “but Pinelink was the first to offer high-speed Internet here. We should be proud of that because it made things easier for others to come in after us.”