In keeping up with current trends and being one step ahead of the competition, Google announced in February its decision to build its own high-speed fiber optic Internet network. Over 600 communities have put their name on the list to be a test site for Google Fiber and over 190,000 emails from interested individuals have flooded the company’s inbox.
Planning to make their decision before the year ends, Google is gearing up and getting its hands dirty by digging in and reviewing potential communities, meeting with their leaders, and determining which location would be ideal for its experiment.
According to the company’s blog, “Like our WiFi network in Mountain View, the purpose of this project is to experiment and learn. Network providers are making real progress to expand and improve high-speed Internet access, but there’s still more to be done. We don’t think we have all the answers – but through our trial, we hope to make a meaningful contribution to the shared goal of delivering faster and better Internet for everyone.”
Some of the cities in the running include Topeka, Kansas (aka Google, Kansas for the month of March), Orlando, Florida, Duluth, Minnesota (who jokingly claims to want to name their firstborn children Google and Googlette Fiber), Greenville, South Carolina, and Seattle, Washington. Forty-seven out of fifty states have a shot at being selected and each city has launched its own campaigns accordingly. Facebook pages and constant media coverage is helping the cities gain popularity via the web.
Only time will tell which contender will win this competition. For the sake of Google and Googlette Fiber, let’s hope it’s not Duluth.
About Brandon Leibowitz
