Advice to all the folks in the new cities: Google deploys per-neighborhood, once signups reach a critical level. So get your apartment manager, your HOA, your neighbors to sign up, even if they don't have any immediate plans to switch. Post tear-off-tag signs in your community with the url: google.com/fiber
>> It’s been nearly five years since we offered to build a fiber-optic network in one U.S. city as an experiment — and were met with overwhelming enthusiasm.
I suspect the enthusiasm had to do with Google not acting like a phone/cable company. My own hope is that this remains true, and that they come to the Boston area.
I am now surrounded by Google Fiber to the east and west, and Chattanooga's public fiber to the south, out here in Knoxville, TN. I really wish we could manage something here. This area has the biggest national lab, and a host of tech industry around it, I was kind of surprised more options didn't exist when I moved down a year ago.
It makes sense to me that Google went after these southeastern markets, because we are the area where Comcast is already enforcing (I've had to pay a couple times) data caps[1]. It's called a "trial" on their site, but the charges are real.
[1] http://customer.comcast.com/help-and-support/internet/data-u...
I'm fully aware of the extreme cost of rolling out a fiber infrastructure in new locations, but I still wonder why Google isn't more aggressive with their expansion. While the upfront costs are great, they more or less have guaranteed success in most major cities. Nobody likes the incumbent telcos--they're hated all over the US. I just dream of a world in which we aren't getting raped by Comcast, TWC, and Cox. They are absolutely abysmal and have no incentive to make their customers happy given their market monopoly/oligopoly.
It's kinda sad that the current ISP climate in America is such that faster speeds being rolled out is at the top of Hacker News.
That said, I'm excited as hell for the roll out. I'm not in one of the target cities, but Google Fiber spreading gives me hope that they'll eventually make it to me. I've lived with Bright House and their terribleness for far, far too long.
Whatever Google's motive, this does help the internet to fully self-realize: every endpoint should be able to both consume and provide services. I don't care if it's a phone or a tablet, or a smart toaster.
I wonder if, for customers who sign up for the basic (free after install fee) package, Google will ramp up their speed if the FCC announces that "broadband" is officially 25/3. That'd be a nice bonus.
Can any Google fiber user tell us how the TV offerings differ from Comcast/Uverse/TWC/Direct TV? Do they include local channels and other channels I've come to expect?
What is missing from Google TV?
Although I'd love to see them come to Houston, we're 640 square miles, so it's not really possible to do a "city" rollout. If Google ever rolls out fiber by Zip Code, that'll be for us.
I would love to see these guys bring us their MVNO Sprint product and/or build a technology park fed by Google Fiber instead, either of which would still have the desired effect of lowering consumer bandwidth costs.
Competition isn't always the boon to free enterprise that we would like it to be. I live in Omaha, NE, where Cox and CenturyLink are the primary ISPs. CenturyLink has limited gigabit fiber in some neighborhoods (not mine, unfortunately), launched late last year.
Cox has raised internet rates about 7% twice in the last 14 months.
I wish Google Fiber would come to SF. I understand they're doing something like that in the southbay though.
Apple earnings, @ $18 billion, are a smidge higher than Sprint's market cap. T-Mobile US has at various times been for sale. It makes you wonder if the major Web ecosystem players won't just start buying SPs so they can break out of bandwidth scarcity as a business model.
Hooray for me and all my Raleigh-Durham brethren! Besides just being a great development, I think this reflects the rapid growth of the tech sector in this area, and having cheap fiber ISP options will go a long way to ensuring we continue to attract top talent & companies.
I believe Cleveland will still have the fastest 100gig fiber.http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2014/11/clevelan...
Sadly, though, the Atlanta rollout only goes as far north as Sandy Springs and Smyrna. No love for those of us up here in Cherokee county.
Hopefully it'll at least scare Comcast and AT&T into stepping up their game. I'd be really thrilled if it straight-up killed Windstream.
I wonder what put those cities ahead, while Portland remains "potential".
Only the wealthiest of the Atlanta suburbs, it seems. What good is "affordable" true broadband that challenges the cable and DSL companies if it never makes it to those who could most use the savings?
MY SWEET REVENGE ON TIME WARNER CABLE AND COMCAST!! Take my money Google. I'd love to see the look on their faces when they realize that Google is coming to eat their lunch.
I really wish they start the service in the D.C Metro/VA regions too. We have FIOS but they charge ridiculous prices (i.e. ridiculous compared to G Fiber prices :-))
I'm surprised they didn't choose San Jose. There must be some things outside of their control considering they would have expanded into their own neighborhood.
I just hope it doesn't take too long to radiate out from Atlanta. Barrow County is the middle of nowhere, but it is right on the road between Atlanta and Athens.
I bet it never comes to the DFW area. Home of Verizon FIOS. Oddly enough I live in Arlington and FIOS is not (nor ever will be) available.
Man, that map is impossible to read. Even as a fairly mildly colorblind person, there's no way I can distinguish the colors.
I live in Austin. Can't wait until they make it available to me. Some day. Years from, probably.
As someone living in Atlanta I can't friggin wait for my break-up call with Comcast. Soon!
I'm perfectly happy with 15mbps. I'd rather see prices go down than speeds go up.
Is there any rime or reason to the cities that Google chooses to put fiber into? Is it a matter of more friendly local government, less resistant local teleco's, a combination thereof or some other factors?
Just seems the locations aren't exactly tech hubs so I'm trying to get a better idea of how the expansion works.
Could be really good for getting some tech love in the southeast.
Google Fiber: Coming to a neighbourhood other than your own soon!
I'm looking for an apartment now!
Does anyone know if Google Fiber monitors your network traffic to serve targeted ads?
PHILLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLYYYYYYYYYYY! We have Cheesesteaks...
No Albuquerque?
Great for competition now, sure, but once copper and coax become obsolete Google becomes the new incumbent monopoly. How is that good for anyone?
Listing cities is really disingenuous as the number of neighborhoods they will actually serve will be quite low, let alone the metro area of cities like Atlanta is quite large and the area most likely buried under cable.
For anyone interested... the whole motivation of Google Fiber to motivate ISPs to stop gouging us does exactly what it is designed to do.
Cox, in Phoenix, miraculously doubled everyone's speeds > 100mbps last year because they were concerned with our general happiness levels and wanted to show their affection.
Nope... that's not it. Ran into two leads at Smash Burger in June of 2014 and asked them on the spot "When are we getting gigabit speed?" and their reply was "End of year, we gotta move before Google Fiber gets here."
None of that would have happened if G Fiber wasn't coming - CenturyLink and Cox were perfectly fine dabbling in 50mbps service for the rest of eternity without true competition.
Now in less than 12 months my 65mbps service was freely upgraded to 150mbps and we are suppose to have a 1Gbps option any month now (there are test neighborhoods live since last year around Scottsdale)
I have no illusions about how fortunate we are being in a well-wired/competitive environment, but damn am I happy and appreciative.
It actually has more impact on me and where I would want to live than I thought... the idea of going back to < 50mbps makes me sad.