Google Fiber
Nokia and Google Fiber trial 50G PON – first in the U.S.
Nokia and Google Fiber have tested 50Gb/s PON over Google’s fiber optic network. The partners say it’s the first live network demonstration of that technology in the US. The trial comes after last year’s partnership between Nokia and Google Fiber to enhance broadband services with 25G PON.
As fiber facility based network operators continue to push for increased speeds and reliability from their broadband networks, 50G PON acts as a catalyst to meet connectivity demands – unleashing further opportunity for growth and innovation. Capable of being easily built upon existing 25G PON solutions, it also enables flexibility for the operators to add future 50Gb/s with the fiber in place.
Nokia claims to be the only vendor that can support all next-generation PON options, with 10G and 25G products available today, 50G in trials, and 100G PON as a technology demonstrator.
With Nokia’s Lightspan fiber access platform, operators can choose a PON solution that best meets a specific use case or business need. The 50G PON trial with Nokia showcases how Google Fiber is looking at the future and what’s needed for new broadband services that foster innovation and growth. Leveraging Nokia’s fiber solution, Google Fiber was able to simultaneously run 10/25G PON along with 25/50G PON broadband service over its fiber network. This showcased the network flexibility and scalability it can deliver to keep pace with the growing demand for multi-gigabit services in the future. Google Fiber is already at the forefront of the multi-gigabit evolution, having launched the first 25G PON commercial services with Nokia in 2023.
Liz Hsu, Senior Director, Product & Billing, at Google Fiber, said: “We are always looking for ways to push the capabilities of our fiber network to deliver the best possible experience to our customers. This test with Nokia builds on the 25G PON deployment we announced together last year, paving the way for future improvements to our network that enhance customer experience in terms of speed, reliability, innovation and support for future business cases that have yet to be defined.”
Geert Heyninck, vice president of broadband networks at Nokia, said: “Service providers need to be able to select the right technology, based on their needs and business case. It is why we already offer 10G and 25G today, are trialing 50G, and developing 100G – ultimately leading to a full range of PON technologies that can be mixed and matched on the same platform and the same fiber. Our expansive toolkit of fiber solutions allows Google Fiber to future-proof their network and flexibly address their evolving network demands.”
Resources and additional information:
Video: Nokia and GFiber Labs trial 50G PON on live network
Website: Nokia Altiplano Access Controller
Website: Nokia Lightspan MF
Website: Accelerating to gigabit with fiber
Website: Fiber for Everything
- GFiber Labs is the second 50G PON trial Nokia has run globally in the past 4 months and the first to occur in the U.S.
- Nokia is the first vendor to show all PON technologies (10G, 25G & 50G) in a live fiber network.
- Nokia is the number one vendor for XGS-PON technology globally according to 2023 market share figures from Dell’Oro and Omdia.
- There are more than 12 operators around the world who are already gaining the benefits of 25G PON, and the eco-system is maturing with more than 5 ONT vendors bringing 25G PON solutions to the market.
- Some operators currently deploying 25G PON include Google Fiber, EPB, Vodafone Qatar and OGI.
- The ecosystem for 25G PON is mature, with more than 60 operators, system vendors, chipset, and optical suppliers part of an MSA focused on standardizing and accelerating the technology.
- Nokia is a key contributor to 50G PON industry standard and introduced the industry’s first true 50G platform in 2020 with the Lightspan MF platform.
- Once the 50G PON industry matures, the step to 100G is straight forward.
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In March, Türk Telekom and ZTE carried out their own 50G PON trial in Turkey, which clocked speeds in excess of 50 Gbps in the downstream over a single fibre. It was apparently done so in a way that was compatible with existing PON generations already deployed in Türk Telekom’s network.
Meanwhile In April, Australia’s NBN demoed Nokia 100G PON tech to reach 83 Gbps on its live full fibre access network, eclipsing the previous trial the October before which achieved symmetrical throughput of 21 Gbps and was a new speed record for PON in Australia at the time.
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References:
https://www.telecoms.com/fixed-networks/nokia-and-google-fiber-trial-50g-pon-in-us
Google Fiber planning 20 Gig symmetrical service via Nokia’s 25G-PON system
Nokia and Hong Kong Broadband Network Ltd deploy 25G PON
Nokia’s launches symmetrical 25G PON modem
Orange and Nokia demo 600Gb/sec transmission over a 914 km optical network; Nokia 25G PON
Google Fiber planning 20 Gig symmetrical service via Nokia’s 25G-PON system
Google Fiber is planning to rollout a symmetrical 20G b/sec service for select residential and business customers by the end of this year. It will use Nokia’s 25G-PON system for this new service.
Nokia’s 25G PON solution will allow Google Fiber to provide broadband speeds up to 10x faster than what most fiber networks can deliver today. GFiber Labs is using Nokia’s solution to deliver 20 Gig services to the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) and United Way of Utah County, with plans to expand to select residential customers by the end of the year.
Liz Hsu, Senior Director, Product & Billing at Google Fiber, said: “The age of multi-gig broadband services is here and we’re committed to ensuring all of our customers can benefit from the incredible potential it brings. We believe investments in advanced network technologies like Nokia’s 25G PON solution will help catalyze change, drive innovation and revolutionize the user experience. We’re thrilled to be working with Nokia to move our industry and customers forward.”
Geert Heyninck, General Manager of Broadband Networks at Nokia, said: “It’s an exciting time to be a Google Fiber customer as we work to help them usher in a new era of connectivity that’s capable of delivering lightning fast 20 gigabit services. With our 25G PON solution Google Fiber can reuse its existing fiber network to quickly and cost effectively deliver the next generation of gigabit services to their customers. We’re proud to continue supporting Google Fiber on its quest to build the foundation of tomorrow’s internet.”
Julie Kunstler, Chief Analyst, Broadband Access Intelligence Service at Omdia, said: “This announcement highlights the momentum we are starting to see for 25G PON. With a robust ecosystem, 25G PON can be a natural fit for those operators that want to pursue higher-revenue customers and applications. Because you can use the same underlying infrastructure as FTTH, this means more revenues without expensive new network builds or additional operational costs.”
Nick Saporito, head of product at Google Fiber, told Fierce Telecom that the company has been trialing the 20-gig service in “many markets” for almost a year. Additional residential test ers are “in the pipeline,” he said.
Asked why Google Fiber is jumping from its current top tier 8-gig offering all the way to 20-gigs, Saporito said “We definitely see a need for this. This is sort of a very early adopter product. This isn’t going to be a GA [general availability] product from Google Fiber where we just make it broadly available like we’re doing with 5-gig and 8-gig. This is going to be a bit of an invite-only opportunity for our early adopters.”
To be clear, Google Fiber’s forthcoming offering won’t be the fastest available in the country nor is the company the first to break the 10G speed barrier. EPB, a local provider in Tennessee, launched a symmetrical 25-gig service in August 2022. It, too, is using Nokia’s 25G kit.
But the move is significant as Google Fiber seems to be the largest operator to make such a play in earnest thus far. Frontier Communications previously said it is working with Nokia on 25G trials, but has yet to announce plans for a commercial service beyond its current 5-gig offering.
Stefaan Vanhastel, VP of Innovation for Fixed Networks at Nokia, told Fierce that Google Fiber was already using the company’s XGS-PON gear, which is based on its upgradable Quillion chipset. So, all the operator needs to do to get to 25G is plug in a new optical module and replace the optical network terminal on the end-user side.
He noted that 25G uses different wavelengths than GPON and XGS-PON, meaning all three technologies can coexist on the same network.
Vanhastel said globally Nokia has around eight or nine 25-gig operators, most of whom are squarely focused on enterprises services. Thus, Google Fiber’s desire to serve both residential and enterprise use cases is special. “To me that’s really exciting, because it’s going to be really interesting to see those multi-gig users how they’re using the service, what they’re doing,” he said. “You build a pipe, someone’s going to try to find a way to fill it.”
Saporito declined to name the markets where its symmetrical 20-gig service will initially be available (though Kansas City seems like a safe bet based on the trial locations). However, he said the operator does have broader plans to make the service available “in most, if not all, of our markets” eventually.
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Nokia 25G PON details:
As 25GPON will drive new and exciting applications, GFiber’s introduction of Nokia’s Lightspan and Altiplano solution increases service agility with operational efficiency. The fiber access node supports multiple fiber technologies including GPON, XGS-PON, 25GS-PON and Point-to-Point Ethernet to deliver a wide range of services with the best fit technology.
Resources and additional information:
Google Fiber and Nokia Video: https://youtu.be/zCFiHdhYSx0
25G PON | Nokia
25GS-PON MSA Group
References:
https://www.fiercetelecom.com/broadband/google-fiber-goes-big-20-gig-plan
Google Fiber is testing ways to boost home internet speeds with new hub
ACSI report: AT&T, Lumen and Google Fiber top ranked in fiber network customer satisfaction
AT&T is #1 in customer satisfaction for fiber optic network providers, according to a new report from the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). ACSI’s report rates consumer satisfaction for both fiber and non-fiber ISPs as well as for video streaming services and apps. For this study, ACSI interviewed more than 22,000 customers at random between April 2022 and March 2023.
AT&T Fiber tops fiber ISPs — and the entire industry — with a score of 80. CenturyLink (Lumen) Fiber is next at 78, followed by Google Fiber (76). The smaller group of fiber ISPs and Verizon Fios both score 75. Frontier Fiber and Xfinity Fiber round out the fiber ISPs at 74 and 73, respectively.
AT&T is targeting a few cities across Arizona and Nevada with its Gigapower joint venture, in partnership with BlackRock. Whereas Lumen just upped multi-gig coverage in its Quantum Fiber markets and Google Fiber announced several forthcoming builds.
Among non-fiber ISPs, T-Mobile takes the top spot with a score of 73. AT&T Internet finishes second at 72, while ACSI newcomer Sparklight sits in third place at 71. Kinetic by Windstream is next at 70, just outperforming Xfinity (68).
Despite an impressive showing among fiber ISPs, Lumen sits near the bottom in the non-fiber group with a score of 62. Frontier Communications and Optimum round out the non-fiber ISPs at 61 and 58, respectively.
“Across the entire customer experience, fiber service shows a strong advantage — from data transfer speed and service reliability to touchpoints like call centers and websites,” says Forrest Morgeson, Assistant Professor of Marketing at Michigan State University and Director of Research Emeritus at the ACSI. “That said, with well over half of U.S. households lacking access to fiber internet, availability remains a sticking point. As such, non-fiber ISP services remain an attractive option for many customers and should not be overlooked by providers.”
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Fiber sets the pace for in-home Wi-Fi quality:
ACSI also measures key aspects of the in-home Wi-Fi experience for both customers who use equipment from their ISP and those who use third-party equipment that they have purchased.
Fiber ISPs (79) outperform both non-fiber ISPs (73) and third-party equipment providers (70) for overall Wi-Fi quality. The former far exceeds the other two in every customer experience benchmark, including strong marks for the security of its Wi-Fi connection (81) and reliability in terms of avoiding loss of service (80).
References:
No Surprise: AT&T tops leaderboard of commercial fiber lit buildings for 7th year!
AT&T expands its fiber-optic network amid slowdown in mobile subscriber growth
AT&T and BlackRock’s Gigapower fiber JV may alter the U.S. broadband landscape
Google Fiber offers 8 Gig symmetric service in Mesa, AZ; Chandler, AZ next in line
Google Fiber is using its service launch in the Westwood neighborhood of Mesa, Arizona, market to also serve as the initial launch point for its new symmetrical 8 Gbit/s broadband service. Residential customers in Mesa can sign up for Google Fiber’s 8 Gig service for $150 per month. 8 Gig offers symmetrical uploads and downloads of up to 8 Gbps with a wired connection, along with a Wi-Fi 6 router (which allows for up to 800 mbps over Wi-Fi) and up to two mesh extenders.
The 8-Gig tier, now Google Fiber’s fastest, sells for $150 per month and comes with a Wi-Fi 6 router and two Wi-Fi mesh extenders. There are three other symmetrical broadband service tiers:
- 1-Gig: $70 per month
- 2-Gig: $100 per month
- 5-Gig: $125 per month
Google Fiber’s debut in the Westwood neighborhood of Mesa arrives about eight months after the city council there approved the buildout. Mesa, the first city in Arizona to get service from Google Fiber, is also being served by primary incumbent providers Cox Communications and Lumen.
Amid the revamp of its network expansion strategy, Google Fiber expects to start construction later this year in Chandler, Arizona, Ashley Church, GM for Google Fiber’s west region, said in a blog post.
As announced last fall, Google Fiber is also in the process of launching new 5-Gig and 8-Gig tiers in additional markets in 2023. Its new 5-Gig service is already available in several Google Fiber markets, including Kansas City, West Des Moines, Iowa, and all the cities it provides service to in Utah.
Google Fiber will start construction later this year in Chandler, AZ. As new segments are completed, we’ll offer service in those neighborhoods. Residents who want to keep up on the construction process or service availability in their area can sign up here. Google Fiber has also conducted lab tests in Kansas City that produced downstream speeds of 20.2 Gbps.
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Here’s an updated snapshot of where Google Fiber currently provides or plans to provide via FTTP or fixed-wireless Webpass services:
Table 1:
| Market | FTTP or Webpass |
| Atlanta, Georgia | FTTP |
| Austin, Texas | FTTP |
| Chandler, Arizona | FTTP |
| Charlotte, North Carolina | FTTP |
| Chicago, Illinois | Webpass |
| Council Bluffs, Iowa | FTTP |
| Denver, Colorado | Webpass |
| Des Moines, Iowa | FTTP |
| Huntersville, North Carolina | FTTP |
| Huntsville, Alabama | FTTP |
| Idaho | FTTP* |
| Kansas City, Kansas and Missouri | FTTP |
| Lakewood, Colorado | FTTP |
| Miami, Florida | Webpass |
| Nevada | FTTP* |
| Nashville, Tennessee | FTTP |
| Oakland, California | Webpass |
| Omaha, Nebraska | FTTP |
| Orange County, California | FTTP |
| Provo, Utah | FTTP |
| Salt Lake City, Utah | FTTP |
| San Antonio, Texas | FTTP |
| San Diego, California | Webpass |
| San Francisco, California | Webpass |
| Seattle, Washington | Webpass |
| *Google Fiber FTTP deployments coming to cities yet to be announced. (Source: Google Fiber and Light Reading research) |
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References:
https://fiber.googleblog.com/2023/03/mesa-here-we-come-and-superfast-too.html
Google Fiber making a 5-gig internet tier available in 12 markets after expanding service in CO and TX
Google Fiber is making a 5-gig internet tier available to customers in four of its 12 existing metro markets. Customers in West Des Moines, Iowa; Kansas City, Kansas/Missouri; and Salt Lake City and Provo, Utah can now sign up for the symmetrical service for $125 per month. That cost compares to $70 per month for its symmetrical 1-gig plan and $100 per month for its asymmetrical 2-gig offering.
In particular, Google Fiber’s 5 Gig tier offers symmetrical upload and download speeds with a Wi-Fi 6 router (or you can easily use your own), up to two mesh extenders and professional installation, all for $125 a month. Installation also includes an upgraded 10 Gig Fiber Jack, which means your home will be prepared for even more internet when the time comes.
As homes get “smarter” and every device is set up to stream, having access to higher speed, higher bandwidth internet becomes even more important. 5 Gig is designed to handle the demands of heavy internet users — for example, creative professionals, people working in the cloud or with large data, households with large shared internet demands. 5 Gig will make it easier to upload and download simultaneously, no matter the file size, and will make streaming a dream even with multiple devices.
The 5 Gig tier will be expanded to additional cities later this year and Google Fiber reiterated plans to debut an 8-gig offering in the near future as well. Google noted in a blog that those who opt for the 5-gig plan will be upgraded to a 10-gig fiber jack during installation, teeing customers up to receive “even more internet when the time comes.”
Here’s their Valentine’s Day message:
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The operator is the latest to move up the multi-gig stack, following in the footsteps of AT&T, Altice USA, Frontier Communications, Greenlight Networks and Ziply Fiber. Once it launches its 8-gig service, it will join the likes of Lumen Technologies, TDS Telecom and Frontier Communications as per this post.
Earlier this week Google Fiber announced that it will expand services to Westminster, Colorado, and Chandler, Arizona. The move will pit Google Fiber up against incumbents that include Comcast and Lumen in Colorado, and Cox Communications and Lumen in Arizona. Data from BroadbandNow notes that Google Fiber competes with AT&T in Kansas City, Kansas and Missouri.
References:
https://fiber.google.com/blog/2023/02/fall-in-love-with-fast-5-gig-is-here.html
https://fiber.google.com/blog/2023/02/google-fiber-continues-to-grow-next-up.html
Frontier Communications offers first network-wide symmetrical 5 Gig fiber internet service
RVA LLC: Fiber Deployment in U.S. Reaches Highest Level Ever; Google Fiber Returns
Fiber facility service providers passed 7.9 million additional homes in the U.S. in 2022—the highest annual deployment ever, even with challenges in materials supply chain and labor availability, according to a fiber deployment report from the Fiber Broadband Association.
The 2022 Fiber Provider Survey was based on research conducted by RVA LLC Market Research & Consulting (RVA). Their researchers found that there are now a total of 68 million fiber broadband passings in the U.S., with strong recent increases of 13% over the past 12 months and 27% over the past two years. The survey also found that 63 million unique homes have now been passed (this figure “excludes homes with two or more fiber passings”). To date, fiber has passed nearly half of primary homes and over 10% of second homes. The annual fiber deployment rate is likely to be even higher over the next five years as BEAD and other broadband funding programs kick in.
In its research, RVA notes that although deployment expectations from individual companies are in constant flux based on many factors, many service providers have announced network builds exceeding the fiber footprint they have built through private funding. Canada is seeing strong fiber deployment as well, with about 66% of homes passed.
“High-quality broadband has become more important to consumers every year. Fiber broadband exceeds all other types of delivery in every single measurement of broadband quality, including speeds, uptime, latency, jitter, and power consumption,” Gary Bolton, Fiber Broadband Association president and CEO, said in a prepared statement. “For the consumer this has real-world impacts, like more productivity, better access to health care and education, more entrepreneurism, and the option of more rural living. For society, this means more sustainability and, ultimately, digital equity.”
Mike Render, Founder and CEO of RVA, will present the findings of the 2022 Fiber Provider Survey on Fiber for Breakfast, Wednesday, December 28, 2022, at 10:00am ET. Click here to register for the episode.
About the Fiber Broadband Association (FBA):
The Fiber Broadband Association is the largest and only trade association that represents the complete fiber ecosystem of service providers, manufacturers, industry experts, and deployment specialists dedicated to the advancement of fiber broadband deployment and the pursuit of a world where communications are limitless, advancing quality of life and digital equity anywhere and everywhere. The Fiber Broadband Association helps providers, communities, and policy makers make informed decisions about how, where, and why to build better fiber broadband networks. Since 2001, these companies, organizations, and members have worked with communities and consumers in mind to build the critical infrastructure that provides the economic and societal benefits that only fiber can deliver. The Fiber Broadband Association is part of the Fibre Council Global Alliance, which is a platform of six global FTTH Councils in North America, LATAM, Europe, MEA, APAC, and South Africa. Learn more at fiberbroadband.org.
The Fiber Broadband Association is also helping with the expansion by helping to train installers through its Optical Telecom Installation Certification (OpTIC) Path program.
Press Contact:
Ashley Schulte
Connect2 Communications for the Fiber Broadband Association
[email protected]
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Separately, Light Reading says that Webpass to play role in Google Fiber’s new expansion efforts. “As we continue to grow our footprint across the country, we’re integrating this [wireless] method for delivering high-speed service in more areas where it makes sense in all our existing cities and in our new expansion areas as well,” Tom Brownlow, senior network operations manager at Google Fiber, and Blake Drager, the head of technology at Google Fiber’s Webpass business, wrote in a post to the company’s website.
Google Fiber recently announced talks were underway with city leaders in five states – Arizona, Colorado, Nebraska, Nevada and Idaho – about expanding fiber services to various communities. Cities to make Google Fiber’s new-build list recently include Omaha, Nebraska, Mesa, Arizona and Lakewood, Colorado. Brownlow and Drager didn’t specify which of those expansion markets might include wireless offerings.
References:
The rebirth of Google Fiber?
After a long pause on network expansions and reducing some of its original commitments in 2016 (including Santa Clara, CA), Google Fiber has once again building out it fiber network. Google Fiber CEO Dinni Jain [1.] wrote in a recent blog post:
“We’ve been steadily building out our network in all of our cities and surrounding regions, from North Carolina to Utah. We’re connecting customers in West Des Moines – making Iowa our first new state in five years – and will soon start construction in neighboring Des Moines. And of course, we recently announced that we’ll build a network in Mesa, Arizona.
And that’s just the stuff we’ve been talking about. For the past several years, we’ve been even busier behind the scenes, focusing on our vision of providing the best possible gigabit internet service to our customers through relentless refinements to our service delivery and products.”
Note 1. Dinni Jain is a former cable industry executive with MSO’s such as Time Warner Cable and Insight Communications,
Google Fiber says it’s talking to city leaders in the following states, with the objective of bringing Google Fiber’s fiber-to-the-home service to their communities:
- Arizona, starting in Mesa as announced in July
- Colorado
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- Idaho
Jain also opened the door to communities interested in building their own fiber networks, pointing to the municipal-focused model Google Fiber has established with cities such as Huntsville, Alabama, and West Des Moines. “We’ll continue to look for ways to support similar efforts,” wrote Jain, who took the helm of Google’s access business unit in 2018.
Google Fiber’s current high-end service provides 2 Gbit/s down by 1 Gbit/s up for $100 per month. Google Fiber has all but phased out its own managed IPTV service, but instead promotes several virtual multichannel video programming distribution (vMVPD) services, including DirecTV Stream, FuboTV, Sling TV and Google’s own YouTube TV.
Google Fiber’s current and planned network and service deployments using FTTP or Webpass, its fixed-wireless platform is depicted in the table below:
| Google Fiber Market | FTTP or Webpass |
| Atlanta, Georgia | FTTP |
| Austin, Texas | FTTP |
| Charlotte, North Carolina | FTTP |
| Chicago, Illinois | Webpass |
| Colorado | FTTP* |
| Denver, Colorado | Webpass |
| Des Moines, Iowa | FTTP |
| Huntsville, Alabama | FTTP |
| Idaho | FTTP* |
| Kansas City, Kansas and Missouri | FTTP |
| Miami, Florida | Webpass |
| Nebraska | FTTP* |
| Nevada | FTTP* |
| Nashville, Tennessee | FTTP |
| Oakland, California | Webpass |
| Orange County, California | FTTP |
| Provo, Utah | FTTP |
| Salt Lake City, Utah | FTTP |
| San Antonio, Texas | FTTP |
| San Diego, California | Webpass |
| San Francisco, California | Webpass |
| Seattle, Washington | Webpass |
| The Triangle, North Carolina | FTTP |
| *Google Fiber FTTP deployments coming to cities yet to be announced. (Source: Google Fiber) |
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References:
https://fiber.googleblog.com/2022/08/whats-next-for-google-fiber.html
https://www.fiercetelecom.com/telecom/google-fiber-taps-former-twc-exec-jain-as-ceo
https://www.wired.com/2017/03/google-fiber-was-doomed-from-the-start/
Google Fiber drops 100Mb/s; Goes ‘All In’ on 1 Gig Internet Access
FTTP build out boom continues: AT&T and Google Fiber now offer Gig speeds to residential/business customers
AT&T has extended its symmetrical 2-Gig and 5-Gig to parts of its full fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) footprint. The expansion (the full list can be viewed here) follows AT&T’s initial launch of multi-gig services to more than 70 US markets.
AT&T said this expansion includes parts of its fiber footprint spanning more than 100 U.S. metro areas.
AT&T Fiber and their Hyper-Gig speeds will be introduced to 7 all-new fiber metro areas in Texas, Oklahoma and Ohio by year-end 2022. Customers in these areas can sign up to be alerted when AT&T Fiber is available to their address through the company’s Notify Me service by visiting att.com/notifyme.
AT&T said it will continue to expand multi-gig capabilities inside its FTTP footprint in 2022, and reiterated plans to expand fiber to more than 30 million customer locations by the end of 2025. Markets on tap for fiber builds include Abilene, Tyler, Victoria, Wichita Falls, and Longview, Texas; Lawton, Oklahoma; and Youngstown, Ohio.
Pricing on AT&T’s new multi-gig remain at the levels announced last month:
- Residential 2-Gig for $110 per month, or business 2-Gig for $225 per month
- Residential 5-Gig for $180 per month, or business 5-Gig for $395 per month
“We’re thrilled to bring our fastest speeds and our best internet experience to more homes and businesses across the country,” said Rick Welday, Executive Vice President & GM of Broadband, AT&T. “The energy and momentum we have in the marketplace is unmistakable and we are proud to be bringing connectivity to more people every single day.”
“The importance of high-speed broadband internet service has never been clearer,” said Bob O’Donnell, President of TECHnalysis Research. “Whether it’s ongoing hybrid work efforts with bandwidth-hungry video meetings, increasing reliance on high-resolution streaming video content, growing interest in online gaming and more, US consumers recognize the need and value of high-quality internet. Multi-gig fiber ups the ante and answers those demands with faster, reliable, symmetrical download and upload speeds.”
AT&T Fiber is internet that upgrades everything! There’s a big difference in the architectural nature of fiber compared to cable. Cable was designed to provide TV content to households, while fiber was designed specifically to provide high-speed internet. Fiber allows high-capacity tasks, such as uploading large documents during video calls and gaming, to flow seamlessly, even during high-usage times.
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AT&T’s gig FTTP offering comes as Frontier Communications, Verizon Communications and Ziply Fiber, get more aggressive with their own multi-gig offerings. Cablecos like CableOne,Suddenlink Communications (asubsidiary of Altice USA), and Comcast/Xfinity are also offering gig download speeds to residential subscribers.
FTTX (Node, Curb, Building, Home) architectures vary with regard to the distance between the optical fiber and the end user. The building on the left is the central office; the building on the right is one of the buildings served by the central office. Dotted rectangles represent separate living or office spaces within the same building.
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Meanwhile, long dormant (and presumed dead) Google Fiber has moved ahead with the debut of a top-tier broadband service for business users that delivers 2 Gbit/s downstream and 1 Gbit/s upstream. Google Fiber’s Webpass fixed wireless services currently deliver up to 1 Gbit/s. Business 2 Gig is available to any business address in any Google Fiber service area. You can Sign up today to see where truly fast, affordable internet can take your business!
Google Fiber’s new business tier costs $250 per month. It’s being bundled with a static IP address (for components such as web and email servers), a Wi-Fi 6 router and a tri-band mesh extender. The new 2-Gig business tier sells for the same price previously affixed to Google Fiber’s 1-Gig service for business, which has been reduced to $100 per month.
Google Fiber introduced its $100 per month, 2-Gig residential service in the fall of 2020, and initially tested it in Nashville, Tennessee, and Huntsville, Alabama. The company has since launched 2-Gig in other FTTP markets, including Atlanta; Austin; Charlotte, North Carolina; San Antonio; Kansas City (Missouri and Kansas); Orange County; Provo and Salt Lake City, Utah; The Triangle, North Carolina. Google Fiber is in the process of launching services in West Des Moines, Iowa, where it tangles with Mediacom Communications.
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References:
https://about.att.com/story/2022/expands-hyper-gig-fiber-offering.html
https://about.att.com/ecms/dam/pages/internet-fiber/ATT-Fiber-market-cities.pdf
For more information or to check availability for all speed tiers of AT&T Fiber, visit att.com/hypergig
https://fiber.google.com/blog/2022/your-business-now-even-faster/
Ziply Fiber deploys 2 Gig & 5 Gig fiber internet tiers in 60 cities – AT&T can now top that!
Analysts: Increased Fiber internet services may force cablecos to alter pricing & deploy FTTP
Sparkle to Build Blue and Raman Submarine Cable Systems in Collaboration with Google Cloud
Each cable system will contain 16 fiber optic pairs while adhering to the innovative concepts of open cable, supporting multiple fiber tenants, and open landing station, enabling competitive access to the cable termination points, the two systems set a new reference in terms of diversification, scalability and latency throughout these geographies.
Blue will be deployed along a new northbound route in the Mediterranean, crossing the Strait of Messina, rather than following the traditional route through Sicily Channel.
As a result, Internet Service Providers, Carriers, Telecom Operators, Content Providers, Enterprises and Institutions will benefit from high-speed Internet and state-of-the-art capacity services with unparalleled diversity and performances.
Within the Blue System, BlueMed submarine cable is now Sparkle’s own private domain sharing its wet components with four additional fibre pairs and an initial design capacity of more than 25 Tbps per fibre pair, and is extended up to Jordan (Aqaba) with additional private branches into France (Corsica), Greece (Chania – Crete), Italy (Golfo Aranci – Sardinia and Rome), Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Turkey, Cyprus and more in the future.
BlueMed flexible design allows both seamless express connections throughout the Mediterranean Basin, with unprecedented latency and spectral efficiency, and sophisticated regional subsystems, based on specific customer requirements.
In addition, Sparkle’s Genoa Open Landing Platform is set to become the alternative priority access for other upcoming submarine cables looking for a diversified entry to Europe, backhauled to the Milan’s rich digital marketplace, and thus a new reference gateway between Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Europe.
Blue and Raman are expected to be ready for service in 2024, with the Tyrrhenian part of BlueMed planned to be operational already in 2022.
“We are extremely proud to bring our collaboration with Google to the next level with this cutting-edge intercontinental infrastructure”, comments Elisabetta Romano, CEO of Sparkle. “With Blue and Raman Submarine Cable Systems, Sparkle boosts its capabilities in the strategic routes between Asia, Middle East and Europe and the enhanced BlueMed strengthens our presence in the greater Mediterranean area”
Google Fiber drops 100Mb/s; Goes ‘All In’ on 1 Gig Internet Access
Google’s affordable, high-speed Fiber internet service has been around for quite some time, but only in select areas of the U.S. As it continues its very slow expansion to more cities and regions, Google is looking to streamline its operations by eliminating one of its only two Fiber based Internet access subscription plans. Google Fiber is dropping its $50/month, 100Mb/s subscription for NEW CUSTOMERS. 100Mb/s FTTP has always been a slightly cheaper alternative to its 1 Gigabit plan, which is only $20 more at $70/month.
“Starting today, we’re recommitting to our roots. We’re going all in on a gig, just like we did all those years ago. We will no longer offer a 100Mbps plan to new customers,” Google said in a blog post. “We are excited to turn our attention back to our gig service, still offered for $70/month—the exact same price it cost back in 2012 when we first launched,” Google added.
Currently, the Fiber service is available in 18 U.S. cities: Atlanta, Georgia; Austin, Texas; Charlotte, North Carolina; Chicago, Illinois; Denver, Colorado; Huntsville, Alabama; Kansas City, Missouri; Miami, Florida; Nashville, Tennessee; Oakland, California; Orange County, California; Provo, Utah; San Antonio, Texas; San Diego, California; San Francisco, California; Salt Lake City, Utah; Seattle, Washington; and The Triangle, North Carolina.. Even in Fiber-connected cities, not every geographic area within the city will have access to the 1 Gig service.
“With increasingly connected homes and ever-improving technologies, speed is more important than any time in our history—and becoming more important every day. And with our fiber networks, we’re uniquely positioned to deliver it,” Google said. “You won’t have any data caps to interrupt even the most impressive binge-watching session. And with the power of a gig, you’re able to use all your connected devices at home at the same time,” the company added.
If Google Fiber sounds like the internet plan for you, please visit the Google units official website to check if your location is supported.
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In its seven-year lifespan, Google Fiber has never had a single price increase. Its straightforward, month-to-month (cancel any time) payment model has always been more attractive than what many competing services offer (many require a one year contract with huge cancellation fee).
Google Fiber’s ambitions are a lot more modest than they used to be. So the news applies to a pretty small percentage of Americans. Fiber scaled back its roll-outs in the mid-2000’s and had to pull out of Louisville, Kentucky earlier this year, following problems with its cable installations beneath the city’s roads. Google put the brakes on most of its expansion efforts, like in the author’s home town – Santa Clara, CA. Apparently, there were just too many hurdles, including the cost of expanding into certain areas, getting permission from the city councils, disputes over access to utility poles, and other challenges.
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