Frontier Communications is asking the state of Wisconsin for nearly $35 million in grants to help improve its internet service in the state, the Wausa Pilot & Review reported. It might be a tough request, considering Frontier declared bankruptcy in 2020 after receiving more than $180 million in federal funds from 2015 through 2020 to upgrade its internet service in Wisconsin. The bankruptcy came after Frontier established a less-than-stellar reputation among Wisconsin residents, who for years have complained about the company’s slow internet speeds and frequent phone outages preventing customers from making emergency 911 calls. Nationally, Frontier’s reputation also has taken hits. In May, Wisconsin, five other states and the Federal Trade Commission announced they were suing Frontier in a federal court in California, claiming that the company failed to provide customers with the internet speeds Frontier originally promised. The company has about 80,000 customer accounts in Wisconsin. Earlier this month, a federal judge dismissed Wisconsin and four other states from the litigation, but allowed the claims of the FTC and California to move forward. Frontier emerged from bankruptcy earlier this year and said in a press release it would upgrade millions of its internet accounts across the country to modern fiber optic cables from the older copper phone wire.
