DEDHAM – A Bangor-based wireless Internet company announced Friday morning that it would expand to provide high-speed service in Greater Bangor communities.

VVD Networks, which is slightly more than a year old, serves more than 100 customers from Newport to Clifton and has its sights on extending to more rural regions, including the Greenville area and Aroostook and Hancock counties, said VVD co-owner Michael Griggs after a press conference at the Lucerne Inn.

“Our mission is to bring high-speed Internet service to communities that remain unserved and underserved,” said VVD Chief Financial Officer Andrew Vamvakias. “The system is not just for residential service; it was also built and designed for the business sector as well.”

VVD uses the Motorola Canopy wireless system, a point-to-multipoint network, which uses towers on mountains or hilltops to send out signals about 31/2 miles and that are picked up by equipment installed at the subscriber’s home or business. More than 3,000 providers use the Motorola technology worldwide, Griggs said.

The company has five towers located in Bangor, Dedham, Orrington, Dixmont and Clifton, but also plans to install three more towers before the end of the year, Griggs said.

Basic residential service starts at $34.95 a month and does not require a phone line, Vamvakias said. There are five levels of service (256 kbps to 2.5 mbps) which cost up to $99.95 depending on whether the customer is in a primary or extended service area.

Business packages begin at $29.95 a month and cost up to $99.95 depending on levels of shared and dedicated packages.

In the past year, VVD has focused on locating towers and ensuring high-performance service before marketing its network across the state, he said.

The company invested “multihundreds of thousands of dollars” in its wireless network, Vamvakias said, adding that the cost to build one tower is $75,000 to $100,000. Leasing space on an existing tower tends to be less expensive, but equipment costs are still significant, he said.

The company began when co-owner Tim Varney complained about not having Internet service at his camp in northwestern Maine. Griggs was doing computer work for Varney’s insurance agency at the time, and the two set out to improve Internet coverage in rural Maine, Varney said.

“I’ve never seen any product so demanded and needed,” Varney said. “A lot of towns offer their own municipal offices to put towers in.”

Gov. John Baldacci and state ConnectME Authority officials were on hand for the announcement, touting the company’s initiative to deliver the Internet to rural communities.

“We have the national resources, but we need to make connections to the world,” Baldacci said. “This provides more opportunities for people to do more things, and to do them here in our state.”

Phil Lindley, acting executive director of the ConnectME Authority said, “The solution for rural communities is wireless networks.” The authority will award more than $400,000 to help jump-start similar networks in rural towns across the state. Grants have yet to be dispersed, but VVD did apply for consideration to serve 41 communities, Lindley said.

The site of the press conference, the Lucerne Inn, is one of several businesses that have become VVD customers. Owners Steve and Rhonda Jones said the reliable, high-speed service has made their business more efficient. The chef used to spend five to six hours ordering food online once or twice a week from a distributor. After starting service with VVD, his order is complete within one to two hours.

“The chef loves it,” Steve Jones said. “It has saved him eight hours a week.”