Google Fiber Network thread.......

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Really excited about the announcement today that Kansas City, Missouri will be included in the initial Google Fiber 1Gbps offering. If they deliver anywhere near that speed, I'll be all over no matter what the price. Our family income is heavily dependent on internet speed, so this is a huge deal for us. It should also help our property value quite a bit.

KansasCity.com | 404

http://www.google.com/fiber/kansascity/index.html

[jeff061]

So jealous. Delete this thread and never mention it again.

Asshole.

[molson]

Can't MBBF get some really long cords or something and connect his internet to each of our houses?

[MrBug708]

Google Fiber for Communities: City/State list

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by jeff061

So jealous. Delete this thread and never mention it again.

Asshole.

+1

A local Telecom received federal stimulus money to run fiber optic lines where I live. Speeds will be up to a blazing 10 Mbps and they assholes are actually calling it high speed.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by MrBug708

Google Fiber for Communities: City/State list

Amazing to see that list and see just how many cities wanted the initial offering. My understanding is that the extremely large railroad hub here in KC was the big reason that we beat out those cities in that list.

[jeff061]

Topeka 'renames' itself 'Google, Kansas' - CNN

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Is Google planning to offer IP video to Kansas City?

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Oh yeah! It's coming!

Google Fiber

Can't wait to see how this all rolls out. Looking forward to MUCH better speeds.

[cartman]

One of my clients has a 100MB connection for their office. We've noticed that the speed tests aren't much different than a 15MB cable modem connection. The issue is peering and bandwith limits at other places. Sure you have a really fast connection to your provider's equipment, but once you get out on the wild, wild Internet things slow down.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by cartman

One of my clients has a 100MB connection for their office. We've noticed that the speed tests aren't much different than a 15MB cable modem connection. The issue is peering and bandwith limits at other places. Sure you have a really fast connection to your provider's equipment, but once you get out on the wild, wild Internet things slow down.

Our main need is for my wife's work. She's downloading huge files constantly for her work over several hours. It's all on a privately controlled server, so the ability to download large amounts is available on that end. Unfortunately, the best speed we can get right now is around 10MB and that's on rare occasions. If she can get even double or triple that regularly, it would create a big income boost for us. I'm not even looking for high speeds as much as consistent speed. We'll see how it goes.

[kcchief19]

Originally Posted by cartman

One of my clients has a 100MB connection for their office. We've noticed that the speed tests aren't much different than a 15MB cable modem connection. The issue is peering and bandwith limits at other places. Sure you have a really fast connection to your provider's equipment, but once you get out on the wild, wild Internet things slow down.

I think that has been overlooked quite a bit with the Google Fiber hype here in KC. If Netflix is having server issues, a gig connection won't resolve it.

That said, if you have a a gig coming to you everyone in your house could be streaming Netflix with no lag. Kansas City alone could crash the Internet.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Pricing plans are out. They start installing in September.......

https://fiber.google.com/plans/residential/

[sterlingice]

Sounds pretty reasonable

SI

[stevew]

The speed in which this technology moves is so unacceptable. I know that I don't live in the mecca of the world obviously, but it took forever for us to even get Verizon LTE. AT&T 4g could be forever, they only recently got 3G(way after everyone else had it). I'd say there is no chance we ever even get FIOS....the thought of this is a dream.

And the pricing is so much better on this than the $180 I pay for the privilege of 1mps up, cable and HBO.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Looks like early registrations are going very well despite this being the first day of pre-registration. 2 fiberhoods have already reached their goal and are guaranteed Google Fiber with several more getting very close. With the deadline being September 9th, I'd say they're going to get most of these neighborhoods to blow through their goal numbers very early. Hopefully that means additional neighborhoods will be added as an option at a quicker pace.

Google Fiber - Fiberhood Goal Tracking

[RainMaker]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Pricing plans are out. They start installing in September.......

https://fiber.google.com/plans/residential/

That looks like a pretty good deal. Wonder when the telcos come in trying to pass laws to ban it.

[Desnudo]

Glad to see Google is trying to blow up the telco oligarchy that screws the consumer

[Qrusher14242]

wow wish we could get free internet here. Thats like 5 times faster speed and i pay $30/month!(with Clearwire)

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Desnudo

Glad to see Google is trying to blow up the telco oligarchy that screws the consumer

Yeah, that's going to be almost as interesting as the service itself. I want to see how the other companies deal with the situation. Will they upgrade to fiber as well? Will they cut rates to compete using an inferior technology? Will they look to fight legally? It'll be fun to watch.

[kcchief19]

There are definitely pluses and minuses with today's info. With taxes and fees, the price is going to be closer to $80 a month for a gig. Now that's a great price compared to other fiber-to-the-home projects where the price has been closer to $300 a month. But if cable companies were to go to $50 a month for 50-100 gig, it's at least worth thinking about the savings.

One huge question is the bandwidth. The hints in the presentation today is that rather than having separate channels for TV and Internet, everything will be on one pipe. So if you're watching TV, that will come out of your gigabit bandwidth. Google also indicated that they will compress their HD video less than conventional cable, but we don't know to what level. That could mean that watching one channel could eat anywhere from 25-100 mbps. Not a huge deal, but definitely a factor.

Unless Google sweetens the TV offering, as it stands now it's a pretty bad deal -- $50 a month (plus fees, so call it $60) for a channel lineup that DOES NOT YET INCLUDE Disney/ABC/ESPN (no Disney Channel or ESPN networks), Fox (no Fox Sports or Fox News), Time Warner (TNT, TBS, CNN, etc.) or any movie channels other than Showtime (which will be a premium service). That's a really crappy lineup.

That said, if they keep the $50 TV price and add ESPN, Fox and Time Warner, that's a great deal. But Google needs them more than they need Google. And I will bet that TWC, Comcast and the satellites are putting pressure on all three not to negotiate a retrans deal with Google.

We also don't know what impact individual users will have on bandwidth. KC is going to be the new hub for video piracy if you can run a gigabit network out of your house for $80 a month. What will be the impact on your bandwidth if your next door neighbor is file sharing The Pirate Bay?

Frankly, the biggest game changer getting no attention is the 5 mbps for seven years for $300. That's a real great deal for lite Internet users that don't stream video.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by kcchief19

There are definitely pluses and minuses with today's info. With taxes and fees, the price is going to be closer to $80 a month for a gig. Now that's a great price compared to other fiber-to-the-home projects where the price has been closer to $300 a month. But if cable companies were to go to $50 a month for 50-100 gig, it's at least worth thinking about the savings.

One huge question is the bandwidth. The hints in the presentation today is that rather than having separate channels for TV and Internet, everything will be on one pipe. So if you're watching TV, that will come out of your gigabit bandwidth. Google also indicated that they will compress their HD video less than conventional cable, but we don't know to what level. That could mean that watching one channel could eat anywhere from 25-100 mbps. Not a huge deal, but definitely a factor.

Unless Google sweetens the TV offering, as it stands now it's a pretty bad deal -- $50 a month (plus fees, so call it $60) for a channel lineup that DOES NOT YET INCLUDE Disney/ABC/ESPN (no Disney Channel or ESPN networks), Fox (no Fox Sports or Fox News), Time Warner (TNT, TBS, CNN, etc.) or any movie channels other than Showtime (which will be a premium service). That's a really crappy lineup.

That said, if they keep the $50 TV price and add ESPN, Fox and Time Warner, that's a great deal. But Google needs them more than they need Google. And I will bet that TWC, Comcast and the satellites are putting pressure on all three not to negotiate a retrans deal with Google.

We also don't know what impact individual users will have on bandwidth. KC is going to be the new hub for video piracy if you can run a gigabit network out of your house for $80 a month. What will be the impact on your bandwidth if your next door neighbor is file sharing The Pirate Bay?

Frankly, the biggest game changer getting no attention is the 5 mbps for seven years for $300. That's a real great deal for lite Internet users that don't stream video.

If I had 1 GB service, I'm not sure I'd even bother with TV. I'd probably just purchase the other things a la carte and/or sign up for a Netflix/Hulu premium service. I find myself really only using a limited amount of channels anyway. Just too damn busy.

With that said, I knew you'd chime in with some good info. Thanks.

[kcchief19]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Yeah, that's going to be almost as interesting as the service itself. I want to see how the other companies deal with the situation. Will they upgrade to fiber as well? Will they cut rates to compete using an inferior technology? Will they look to fight legally? It'll be fun to watch.

AT&T is apparently punting. They've put a freeze on expanding uVerse, and there have been rumors they may be putting their local uVerse customer base on the for-sale market.

Comcast is probably fairly insular for a while. Even if Google decides to take expand their experiment, it will take several years before they reach Comacast markets in the suburbs.

TWC has a lot of options available to them regarding price and service upgrades. The company has been pretty straightforward in public saying they have zero plans to take fiber-to-the-home in any market. What's a more likely example is if you look to their Wi-Fi network in Los Angeles and providing "Internet everywhere" for subscribers to use Wi-Fi away from home.

I'm equally interested in seeing what Google actually plans to do. Their original point with Google Fiber was to prove it could be done and to influence Congress and the FCC to accelerate the national broadband project and prove that superfast Internet service was easier and cheaper to do than the cable companies claim. In theory, they had no interest in setting up a national ISP. However, they had done a lot of work in that direction and own several new patents for fiber delivery, set top boxes and IPTV technology. That's definitely worth something.

Google's agreements are actually partnerships with both the city and the power companies, which happen to own a ton of dark fiber and many of the poles Google is attaching to. Those same agreements with the electric utilities give Google the option of pulling out of the project any time after three years, and the electric companies have the right to purchase at fair market value, minus their investment already put into Google Fiber. These deals were structured in a way that seemed very likely that the electric utilities would own these networks in 10-15 years.

That's the next competition for the cable companies. Utility companies have been building dark fiber nationwide for decades ... they just didn't know what to do with it. Now Google is showing them.

[Desnudo]

Anyone have FIOS Quantum - claiming up to 300 MBS download? Of course their speed test on my current Fios says 26 MBS when I swear I've never seen anything faster than 6-7 MBS

[mckerney]

Originally Posted by Desnudo

Anyone have FIOS Quantum - claiming up to 300 MBS download? Of course their speed test on my current Fios says 26 MBS when I swear I've never seen anything faster than 6-7 MBS

They advertise 300 Mbps*, which is a max speed of about 38 MBps*. And I'm sure they claim in small print that that's the maximum speed while actual speed may vary based on network congestion.

Plus downloads are going to also be limited by the speed that data is being sent to you, so for typical downloads it may be that you're only being sent data at 6-7 MBps.

*1 MBps (Megabytes per second, the way speed is typically shown when you download something on your computer) = 8 Mbps (Megabits per second, the way bandwidth speeds are advertised by ISPs [which I'm sure is done because most people don't realize the different between a capital and lowercase b so if two companies were offering the same speed at the same price but one listed Mbps and the other MBps most people would go with the company listing Mbps because it looks faster])

[Desnudo]

I had no idea about the mbps thing.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Interesting situation that is showing up using the 'fiberhood' registration system. The idea behind the system was to provide low-cost internet to all neighborhoods. Now take a look at this map.........

Google Fiber

See that dividing line between the green fiberhoods (met registration goal) and the yellow fiberhoods (not met registration goal). That is known in Kansas City as the 'Troost Wall'. To the right of that line is the poorer areas of KC. To the left is the nicer areas. Turns out that even with the reduced cost, the poorer neighborhoods still aren't interested.

I've heard that Google is formulating options to break down that 'wall', but for now, it's a stark contrast that shows where the city is split.

[gstelmack]

Well, maybe getting computers to the people in the poorer section so they could use the connection?

[lordscarlet]

Are they not interested, do they not have computers, or did they not know about registration?

[Scoobz0202]

Originally Posted by lordscarlet

Are they not interested, do they not have computers, or did they not know about registration?

I'd be curious if it is simply exposure and knowledge of Google's Fiber network. But I have no idea how it has been marketed and spread in the Kansas City area.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by lordscarlet

Are they not interested, do they not have computers, or did they not know about registration?

Originally Posted by Scoobz0202

I'd be curious if it is simply exposure and knowledge of Google's Fiber network. But I have no idea how it has been marketed and spread in the Kansas City area.

I think some of it has to do with the lack of exposure in those areas. Google is marketing heavily via the internet and TV in our area. I'm not sure that the people in those areas, since the income is lower, actually know much about the offering. But that's obviously a problem in itself. I think Google is trying to figure out how to cross that divide.

I'm sure kcchief19 will be able to add to this discussion. I know he was involved in the industry here in KC and will know what hurdles have to be crossed in those areas.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

dola

Noticed that they've added information on channel lineups, free Nexus 7 tablet, and discounted Chromebooks available for customers.

https://fiber.google.com/plans/residential/

[Ragone]

Its odd really.. kcchief mbbf and myself all live roughly 10 minutes from each other... so lets hope we all end up getting g fiber in our area..

honestly.. i'd probably pay the 300 for 6-7 years of internet.. i don't need insane speeds honestly..

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by Ragone

Its odd really.. kcchief mbbf and myself all live roughly 10 minutes from each other... so lets hope we all end up getting g fiber in our area..

honestly.. i'd probably pay the 300 for 6-7 years of internet.. i don't need insane speeds honestly..

We'll be getting it in North KC. They've already said we'll be in the second phase of pre-registration.

Google Fiber Blog

1. When are you building to North and South Kansas City, Mo.?

Our first pre-registration phase includes homes in Kansas City, Kan. and homes in Central Kansas City, Mo. But we are definitely committed to serving homes in North and South Kansas City, Mo. in our second pre-registration phase. Residents should stay tuned to google.com/fiber and this blog for more information.

[kcchief19]

I was absolutely stunned on launch day that Google was using the maps to show registrations. It was an absolute recipe for disaster to vividly illustrate the gap between the haves and the have nots when it comes to broadband.

The existing market penetration for broadband in these neighborhoods are very low already, maybe 10-15% or less in some areas. Most households don't have a computer, and don't have $500 to shell out for the netbook/Internet offer.

On top of that, these neighborhoods have higher rental rates and multifamily units. Google is still have problems dealing with apartment renters who want to register. But for rental homes its up to the owner to signup since the connection is tied to the home -- you can't take Google Fiber with you. It's up to landlords to setup the service, and so far they aren't showing a lot of willingness to do it.

The fault is two-fold. First, Google has completely punted on their original stated goals for this -- creating an open network that makes super fast broadband access available to everyone. They've closed the network and aren't exactly blowing the doors off on pricing.

Second, non-profit groups and the city aren't putting their money where their mouth is. For $5 million you could provide a netbook and Google Fiber to 10,000 homes. Why aren't local foundations and the city that have been giving Google free advertising and promotion raising the money to make this happen? For about $7 million you could give every kid in the Kansas City, Mo., School District a netbook and Google Fiber.

That would be a game changer. But the nonprofit, business and civic communities are doing absolutely nothing.

[Desnudo]

Why doesn't Google just do that?

[SteveMax58]

Originally Posted by kcchief19

The fault is two-fold. First, Google has completely punted on their original stated goals for this -- creating an open network that makes super fast broadband access available to everyone. They've closed the network and aren't exactly blowing the doors off on pricing.

Google is doing this as a calculated business ploy. From a practical standpoint, they have absolutely no idea how to be a service provider. And they don't have any intention of really being one for long.

What that means is that they are perfectly fine outsourcing nearly all of this for a gigantic loss that they try to absorb into "other" areas of their business so as to not appear unprofitable with Google Fiber...in the name of getting more favorable regulatory reform which forces real service providers to offer "internet" for a reduced rate. A rate, mind you, that Google could not sustain a viable business model on themselves.

I don't mean to imply that there are not valid alternatives to the conventional "service provider" model where you wait for them to justify the cost of adding customers. But I just find Google's example to be complete bullshit.

[Buccaneer]

Why do I keep seeing Goober Network in the thread title?

Seriously, I would love to some fiber network alternative here.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Buccaneer

Why do I keep seeing Goober Network in the thread title?

Seriously, I would love to some fiber network alternative here.

Wait, so Bucc saw "Goober Network" and wants more fiber. Can't resist old jokes...

SI

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Google grabs the ABC family of networks, including ESPN. Initial group of fiberhoods to receive service will be announced tomorrow.

Google Fiber Blog

[kcchief19]

That really leaves Fox and Time Warner Inc. as the last holdouts. Doesn't surprise me because on the current environment those two have taken hard line stances on retransmission and other video rights for providers. It a long time for Time Warner Cable and Time Warner Inc. to get a deal on HBOGo, and Fox negotiations have gone down the wire and beyond a lot lately.

I'm more optimistic they will get deals done and have a strong channel lineup at launch. But one thing missing has been details on a TV Everywhere package with Google. Will you have WatchESPN or apps they let you watch channels on mobile devices?

I dropped by the Google Fiber store an came away with two impressions:
1) They are just like cable providers in talking out of their ass. They gave answers that I know are wrong. They also had the local Fox station on in SD and said it was because they didn't have the HD version.
2) They are going to nickel and dime you just like other cable providers. They are going with a satellite model where you own the equipment. You will get free modem, a free storage server and a free receiver. Additional equipment or replacing equipment will be charged. No word in costs that I've seen.

That's probably mixed news for most. Some people like owning their equipment. I actually prefer the cable lease plan.

Be interesting to see the timeframe for rollout.

[kcchief19]

Interesting additions today ... Google has signed up the Turner Broadcasting subsidiary of Time Warner Inc., which means CNN, TNT, TBS, MLBN, Cartoon Network and others are now in TW channel lineup. It does not include sister company HBO, which is a separate subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. Not unusual for those deals to be done separately but it would be odd not to have HBO at all.

That leaves Fox/News Corp. as the last holdout.

Google also rolled out their construction schedule through 2013. So it looks like MBBF and I will have to wait until 2014 or so.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Somewhere, Cartman just screamed like a little girl........

Google Fiber Blog - Next Stop, Austin

[kcchief19]

I really hate my city sometimes. The guy who is KCMO's point man for Google Fiber continually spins all sorts of positive angles out of Google Fiber, and now is taking the argument that Google going to Austin is good news for Kansas City.

The more places that have fiber is bad for Kansas City, especially if those cities are perceived to be cooler or hipper than KC. So many people are arguing that fiber is going to attract all these high-tech jobs to KC, not realizing that as soon as other places have fiber that competitive advantage is gone.

Austin is about to be overwhelmed by even more hipsters.

[cschex]

Yay, more reasons for people to move to Austin.

Seriously though, the fiber will be pretty cool

[cartman]

I'm glad that it is coming to Austin, but I'm not holding my breath about it making it all the way out to where I am. Our development is the end of the line for cable Internet.

[bigdawg2003]

I'm excited - will make a lovely 30th birthday present to myself next year.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by kcchief19

I really hate my city sometimes. The guy who is KCMO's point man for Google Fiber continually spins all sorts of positive angles out of Google Fiber, and now is taking the argument that Google going to Austin is good news for Kansas City.

The more places that have fiber is bad for Kansas City, especially if those cities are perceived to be cooler or hipper than KC. So many people are arguing that fiber is going to attract all these high-tech jobs to KC, not realizing that as soon as other places have fiber that competitive advantage is gone.

Austin is about to be overwhelmed by even more hipsters.

I generally agree, but I don't care too much as long as it ends up in my neighborhood soon. I'm not terribly pleased with the rollout pace, but it'll be worth the wait once it happens. Our area should see a heavy adoption rate and be one of the early neighborhoods to get it in the Northland.

[fantom1979]

I wonder how much it would cost to split fiber line from Mizzou's house to mine in Detroit.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by fantom1979

I wonder how much it would cost to split fiber line from Mizzou's house to mine in Detroit.

The signal would likely get degraded to only 100MB speed on your end. We can't have that.