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Google Fiber ramps reach of 2-Gig service
Google Fiber is ratcheting up deployments of a new 2Gbit/s broadband service that was initially offered last fall in select markets via the ISP's Trusted Tester program.
Atlanta is part of the early batch of Google Fiber markets to get the new 2-Gig product.
(Source: Google Fiber) The new offering, which delivers 2 Gbit/s down and 1 Gbit/s upstream for $100 per month, has been launched in Utah (in both Provo and Salt Lake City) and in Atlanta, following earlier debuts in Huntsville and Nashville. Google Fiber pairs that service with a new Wi-Fi 6 router and Wi-Fi mesh extender. Google Fiber tangles in those new markets with cable incumbent Comcast, which offers a 1-Gig service (in the downstream direction) on its hybrid fiber/coax (HFC) DOCSIS 3.1 network, as well as a pricey symmetrical 2Gbit/s fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) product called Gigabit Pro that is sold on a targeted basis. The cable industry is also working on DOCSIS 4.0, a next-gen platform for HFC that will support multi-gigabit speeds. The industry's broader "10G" initiative targets HFC as well as FTTP and wireless networks with symmetrical 10-Gig speeds, along with enhanced security and low latency capabilities. Google Fiber is expanding the new offering, branded as "2 Gig," after "thousands" of customers took advantage of the ISP's test program, the ISP announced in this blog post . Customers in those markets can still get Google Fiber's flagship symmetrical 1-Gig service for $70 per month. Google Fiber plans to introduce 2 Gig in more cities "shortly," but didn't identify them. Potential expansion candidates include Kansas City (Kansas and Missouri); San Antonio, Texas; and The Triangle, North Carolina. Last fall, Google Fiber said 2-Gig service will launch in most of its FTTP and Webpass fixed wireless cities in "early 2021."
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— Jeff Baumgartner, Senior Editor, Light Reading, special to Broadband World News |
Charter has sparked RDOF work in all 24 states where it won bids. The cable op booked about $19 million in RDOF revenues in Q1, and expects to have about $9 million per month come in over the next ten years.
Launch of 2-Gig and 5-Gig FTTP tiers in 70-plus markets puts more pressure on cable ops to enhance their existing DOCSIS 3.1 network or accelerate their upgrade activity centered on the new DOCSIS 4.0 specs.
Ziply Fiber, an operator that tangles with Comcast and Charter, has launched two multi-gigabit tiers in 60 urban areas, aiming for all markets by Q2 2022.
Elon Musk's nascent broadband will need to radically accelerate the rate of satellite launches – and navigate tricky supply chain logistics – if it's going to come close to fulfilling its global ambition.
MoffettNathanson questions whether mobile operators will have the network capacity and the right business metrics to back their aggressive stance and forecasts for fixed wireless home broadband.
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