Google Fiber Straps On Cowboy Boots And 10-Gallon Hat, Heads To San Antonio, Texas
When we last left Google Fiber, Google announced that it would be setting up shop in Salt Lake City, Utah. That was in addition to a number of other large U.S. metropolitan areas that were announced earlier in the year including Atlanta, Georgia; Nashville, Tennessee; Charlotte, North Carolina; and Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina.
Today, Google is proud to announce that it has selected another city that will receive its high-speed fiber Internet service; and its Google’s latest “Fiber” city to date. San Antonio, Texas is home to 1.4 million residents and represents “one of the biggest and fastest growing cities in the country,” according to Google.
“San Antonio has developed a thriving tech landscape,” said Mark Strama, Texas Head of Google Fiber. “Moreover, San Antonio’s recent selection for President Obama’s Tech Hire and Connect Home initiatives will help create a pipeline of tech jobs and narrow the digital divide.”
Google Fiber will provide San Antonio residents with 1Gbps Internet at a time when the national average data transfer speeds for U.S. residents is a pitiful 12 Mbps. However, Google won’t be without competition in the area with its Google Fiber service. AT&T previously announced that its own 1Gbps U-Verse with GigaPower service will also be coming to San Antonio.
“Soon, we’ll enter the design phase of building our fiber network in San Antonio,” added Strama. “We’ll work closely with city leaders over the next several months to plan the layout of over 4,000 miles of fiber-optic cables—enough to stretch to Canada and back—across the metro area.”
The Internet-only Google Fiber service costs just $70 per month, and you’ll have to fork over a one-time $300 construction fee. However, that construction fee is waived if you agree to at least a one-year service contract. Google also offers a much slower 5Mbps downstream (1Mbps upstream) Internet service for free. But in order to take advantage of the “free” offer, you’ll either have to pay the $300 construction fee upfront or in twelve installments of $25 during the first year of service.
