> But the point for Google isn't to go head to head with the broadband services > already offered by AT&T, Comcast and other phone and cable TV companies. It's > to apply not-so-subtle pressure on them to do more.
This seems to be a common pattern at Google, to do high-profile projects to shake things up so that *others* have to make major investments. Still trying to figure out if that is brilliant or lame... -- Ernie P. On Feb 15, 2010, at 9:55 AM, [email protected] wrote: > > LATimes Feb 15, 2010 > EDITORIAL > Google's broadband venture > > If Google sparks a race to the top among broadband providers, it will hardly > be the only one to benefit. > > > Google's plan to build an ultra-fast broadband service is so appealing, it > defies credulity. The speed -- 1 gigabit per second -- is about 200 times > faster than the fastest connections available in the U.S. today. Alas, for > the vast majority of Internet users, Google's gambit is is too good to be > true. The new fiber-optic lines will be deployed in only a handful of > communities, reaching no more than half a million people. But the point for > Google isn't to go head to head with the broadband services already offered > by AT&T, Comcast and other phone and cable TV companies. It's to apply > not-so-subtle pressure on them to do more. > > It's no accident that Google unveiled its fiber-optic vision while the > Federal Communications Commission is developing a National Broadband Plan, > which will set goals for Internet access services in the United States -- > including the amount of bandwidth they should provide. A major impediment to > improving this country's comparatively pokey broadband networks is the cost > of deploying more fiber optics, but Google's engineers evidently believe they > can build a network at significantly less expense than the current state of > the art. If so, the Google demonstration project would provide a blueprint > for Internet providers to follow. > > Phone and cable companies already have developed technologies that are > capable of delivering far faster Internet connections than they offer > customers. But they devote the vast majority of that bandwidth to lucrative > pay-TV services, not to less-pricey Internet access. And they have little > incentive to change that ratio, especially not if they would be helping free > online video services undercut the demand for pay television. > > Nevertheless, faster broadband services would offer far greater value to the > public than 700 channels of news, sports and entertainment. Each quantum leap > in connectivity has led to a significant transformation -- the dial-up > Internet launched global e-commerce; wired broadband enabled "cloud > computing" and promoted the digitalization of information and entertainment; > mobile broadband networks bring the world's resources to people's fingertips. > > Google's gigabit test bed enables innovators to show the public what the next > leap in bandwidth could bring to education, medicine and who knows what other > segments of the economy. > > Internet providers often grumble about Google freeloading on the investments > they've made -- its YouTube subsidiary and its Web-based mail and > productivity services all reach their customers through other companies' > broadband pipes. So Google's latest project is by no means altruistic. On the > other hand, if Google sparks a race to the top among broadband providers, it > will hardly be the only one to benefit. > _______________________________________________ > Centroids mailing list: [email protected] > http://radicalcentrism.com/mailman/listinfo/centroids_radicalcentrism.com > Archives at > http://radicalcentrism.org/pipermail/centroids_radicalcentrism.com/
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