February 22, 2016
Working with Huntsville to connect more people
This morning, we stood alongside Mayor Tommy Battle as he announced that we’re bringing Google Fiber to Huntsville, Alabama, using part of the fiber network that Huntsville Utilities is building.
Now more than ever, cities are exploring new ways to help their communities flourish with fiber. Like any infrastructure, such as roads or electric grids, a fiber network is a long-term investment that can benefit a city for decades. In 2014, Huntsville’s leaders shared their vision for a community energized by superfast speeds — and they decided to build a network that could support an electrical smart grid and other municipal needs, plus provide the best of the Web for local families, entrepreneurs, businesses and academics alike. To help achieve this goal, the city asked to hear from fiber providers who might be interested in working together. So we got in touch.
To date, we’ve built the majority of our Google Fiber networks from scratch. But over the past five years, we’ve repeatedly seen that every city is unique. So in order to bring Fiber to more people, we’ve taken different approaches in different places. In Provo, Utah, our Google Fiber service is being delivered over a network we purchased from the city. In Atlanta, Georgia, we’re both constructing our own network, and using existing fiber to provide Google Fiber to some apartment buildings. And now, due to the leadership of the Mayor and Huntsville Utilities CEO Jay Stowe, we’ll be working with a muni-owned network to bring our high speed service to Huntsville.
Few places are better positioned than Huntsville to show what’s possible with top Internet speeds. The Rocket City boasts the highest concentration of engineers in the country, and ranks among the best places in the country for STEM workers. Ultrafast Internet will help enable Huntsville to remain at the forefront of science and tech.
So what comes next? Pending final approvals, Huntsville Utilities will design and construct its network. Once the network is built, Google Fiber — or any other broadband provider — will be able to bring high speed Internet service to the city. This is just the beginning of the process, so it's too early to share dates or timelines. But, if you'd like to receive updates on when Google Fiber will come to Huntsville, sign up at google.com/fiber/cities/huntsville.
Now more than ever, cities are exploring new ways to help their communities flourish with fiber. Like any infrastructure, such as roads or electric grids, a fiber network is a long-term investment that can benefit a city for decades. In 2014, Huntsville’s leaders shared their vision for a community energized by superfast speeds — and they decided to build a network that could support an electrical smart grid and other municipal needs, plus provide the best of the Web for local families, entrepreneurs, businesses and academics alike. To help achieve this goal, the city asked to hear from fiber providers who might be interested in working together. So we got in touch.
To date, we’ve built the majority of our Google Fiber networks from scratch. But over the past five years, we’ve repeatedly seen that every city is unique. So in order to bring Fiber to more people, we’ve taken different approaches in different places. In Provo, Utah, our Google Fiber service is being delivered over a network we purchased from the city. In Atlanta, Georgia, we’re both constructing our own network, and using existing fiber to provide Google Fiber to some apartment buildings. And now, due to the leadership of the Mayor and Huntsville Utilities CEO Jay Stowe, we’ll be working with a muni-owned network to bring our high speed service to Huntsville.
Few places are better positioned than Huntsville to show what’s possible with top Internet speeds. The Rocket City boasts the highest concentration of engineers in the country, and ranks among the best places in the country for STEM workers. Ultrafast Internet will help enable Huntsville to remain at the forefront of science and tech.
So what comes next? Pending final approvals, Huntsville Utilities will design and construct its network. Once the network is built, Google Fiber — or any other broadband provider — will be able to bring high speed Internet service to the city. This is just the beginning of the process, so it's too early to share dates or timelines. But, if you'd like to receive updates on when Google Fiber will come to Huntsville, sign up at google.com/fiber/cities/huntsville.