“Toto, I don’t think we’re in Kansas any more.” If Dorothy would have just had high-speed internet way back then. Now, we have Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) making that ultra high-speed internet 1-Gigabit announcement that its massively faster 100-times normal broadband (well, up to 100-times that is) will be coming to the Kansas City, Kansas area.
Google said on its official Google Blog that it has now signed the development agreement with the city. Some may feel that Kansas is an odd choice, but it should have been assumed that the hottest internet markets weren’t going to make the cut here. New York City has too high of a population density for Google to be able to make a dent in the local market speeds. Ditto for most other major metro areas. Besides, Kansas City just got DSL web access last year. JUST KIDDING.
Google noted, “In selecting a city, our goal was to find a location where we could build efficiently, make an impact on the community and develop relationships with local government and community organizations.”
What is not important is that it was Kansas City. It is not even important that this faster speed will be available in 2012. What matters is what this means for the years ahead as the faster speeds get rolled out nationwide. Remember the old Qwest “We have every movie ever made” commercial showing how solid their network was (like 10-years ago)?
Usually, broadband is fast enough for the average person. Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA) and AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) via U-Verse (and competitors) are generally adequate. Where the problems come into play are in endless video downloads and now in movie downloads via Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) along with other high bandwidth web usage.
None of us want real disruptions in Internet Neutrality, but the owners of networks at some point either have to charge those who use more than a fair “all you can eat” bandwidth model or they have to use governors on those who hog bandwidth.
Everyone would like a faster web experience. Broadband still often gets bottle-necked. The question that will arise on faster and faster internet access is simple… How much more will Americans be willing to pay above their existing rates for faster internet speeds? If the answer is “Not much” then you shouldn’t expect the billions and billions of dollars to be spent by carriers just because the technology is available.
Remember this, some people are still using dial-up web access.
JON C. OGG
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