Penobscot Nation Tribal Internet Access – Indian Island

Spectrum PINE Bulk Program Quick Payment Portal Checkout

THANK YOU!

We would like to thank all the folks who have expressed their appreciation for the Penobscot Spectrum Bulk Internet Program. A good percentage of people have expressed they are, indeed, now saving up to a hundred dollars a month, if not more, as well as $1000s throughout a year. This was the whole intent of the Chief’s office and APS entering into this agreement – to save our residents meaningful resources for ever-rising internet costs.

Are you still being billed by Spectrum? We have heard from a good percentage of residents still do not understand how the program is meant to work, in conjunction with other services Spectrum provides to its customers. One of the more common complaints Island residents have had is that they “are still being billed by Spectrum.” What we have found is people have not been billed FOR INTERNET SERVICES by Spectrum. We remind, from the first announcements we sent out on the program, if you had other Spectrum services, such as Cable TV or land line/cell phone, Spectrum would still be billing you separate for those other services. MOST IMPORRTANT, Island residents should see
on their Spectrum Bill (if having other services) their “Internet Services” line item showing no cost. The Internet Services should say “Zero” for costs as part of their bill. This is because that charge has transferred to the PINE Bulk program. Of the few dozen residents who were adamant they were still being billed by Spectrum, we have found only one (1) person was listed on the bulk program, who was indeed still being billed by Spectrum for internet services. We quickly communicated with Spectrum Community Development Solutions and had this error fixed. If you have been charged on your Spectrum bill for internet services, we ask for a screenshot of the bill, sent to William Phillips, Manager, at (207) 951-6132. Again, if you are still being charged, we will fix it immediately. However, as explained, most people are simply misreading their bills, believing they are being charged for internet services, when it is actually for those additional cable television and/or land phone lines if they also order these. If your Spectrum bill shows zero charges for internet services, then it is the APS internet services invoice we send out that must be paid to for your internet services.

Note. if anyone has past due internet debt with Spectrum prior to the 01/12/2024 transition, Spectrum will still be trying to collect under internet services, however, this is fully unrelated to the PINE bulk program. Indian Island residents are still obligated to pay for the services they are receiving under the bulk services program. We will inform folks; we do have the capacity to turn off folk’s internet services for non-payment of their internet services bills. Please know, this is the very last resort we hope to have to use, but people not paying is not fair to all those Island residents who have made diligent efforts to pay their monthly bill without issue.

WE ARE HERE TO ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS – We do recognize, even after repeated notices released to the community, that some residents still do not fully understand how we have had to set up the billing system. We regret if there is still confusion at this point, we are available every business day at the (207) 817-0373 number from 9AM-5PM to answer questions. We have finalized the recurring payment option through the PINE payment portal as well as the electronic checking option. We, once again, thank all Island residents for their patience and do hope they are enjoying the savings so many other residents are to date.

FURTHER NOTE – We do not force anyone to participate in the bulk internet services program. If anyone chooses to forgo this opportunity, this is certainly their right. However, we unfortunately must share that Spectrum has added a new policy, where if a resident opts out, they will not be allowed back on the program. We know a small percentage of residents will have valid reasons why they choose not to participate. that is fine and their choice. Please be aware though, in the future, opting out of the program could potentially mean opting out for good. We are however negotiating with Spectrum, especially over the confusion over the end of the Federal Government’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) subsidization was discontinued on May 1st, 2024. Please note, the ACP program had absolutely no relation to the PINE Bulk Spectrum Program, though ACPs ending was coincidental to the timing of the bulk program starting up.
Thank you

Important Numbers

PINE Internet billing and questions about the program: (207) 817-0373
For New Orders to the Bulk Program, call: (833) 697-7328
For Internet Service/Wi-Fi Tech Support, call: (833) 697-7328
The above numbers are for Spectrum contacts, who will add new accounts to the program, send the newly required equipment, and ensure your current internet is transferred to our program. Spectrum will continue to bill separately for any other Spectrum services customers receive from Spectrum, including TV cable packages and phone land line. Also, please note, with Spectrum upgrading their internet speed from 300 Mbps to 1 Gigabit, residential customers may need to call the (833) 697-7328 phone and request the upgraded Cable Modem & Wi-Fi Router to get the 1 Gigabit speed. Otherwise, the older equipment will bottleneck at around 400 Mbps speed. Spectrum can only provide this new equipment, not All Pine Solutions. Also note, to get the 1 Gigabit speed devices, such as computers, laptops, phones, gaming consoles, tablets, etc., must also include the latest hardware and/or firmware updates to handle the 1 Gigabit throughout. Folks using older hardware will experience similar bottlenecks and throttling issues, like using an old Spectrum modem & 3rd party router. Again, please call us at (207) 817-0373, we will be happy to explain these factors of the 1 Gigabit speed and how to best attain the higher speeds. Folks should recognize, just using the new Spectrum Wi-Fi router will deliver 400-600 MBPS, due to how wireless and hardware overhead handle actual coaxial delivered internet services.

Portal Safety: Note, our payment portal and website are encrypted, all information given using the portal is protected under multiple security safety protocols.

Promos, other prices discrepancies: We have received a report that an end user’s rate for their phone/cable service increased above the current promo rate they were under, after the internet services were removed from package bill. This should not have occurred because of separating out the internet services. During our due diligence, and negotiations of this deal, this specific situation negotiated with Spectrum, and they informed no changes would be made and those promos rates for the other services would still be honored (until such time the promo itself expired.) If you believe this has happened to you, please contact us at your earliest convenience, we will certainly contact Spectrum and find out why this is showing up on your bill, and work to have it corrected. Again, no other services should increase while participating in the Bulk Purchase Program. We are here to help address all events inconsistent with the program that we agreed to with Spectrum.
Thank you.