Google in high-speed net move

Google made a fresh effort on Wednesday to prod the US communications industry into accelerating its investment in faster internet access, promising to build its own ultra-high-speed fibre-optic system to connect up to 500,000 Americans.

The news prompted speculation that the internet search engine company could be considering becoming a full-scale network provider in its own right.

It echoed the response to other Google initiatives that have involved it testing or investing in advanced communications technology.

Google described its proposed networks, however, as “experimental”, and added that the “purpose of this project is to experiment and learn”. It said the networks would operate at 1Gbps, (one gigabit per second) or 100 times faster than most US broadband speeds at present.

The huge cost of building networks that take fibre-optic cables direct to homes has held back their development, threatening to hinder future Google applications that might depend on ultra-high-speed access.

In a blog post on Wednesday, the company said it hoped to test high-speed applications over its experimental networks, for instance giving users the ability to download a high-definition movie in less than five minutes or watch live 3D video services.

A Federal Communication Commission taskforce set up to propose a national broadband plan has estimated that it would cost up to $350bn to upgrade networks, depending on the data speeds involved.

The plan is due to be completed next month, and is expected to call for releasing more wireless spectrum for broadband internet use.

The timing of Google’s announcement appeared designed to lend support to the FCC’s initiative. Google also promised to keep its high-speed networks open, allowing users to pick their own service provider.

In a statement on Wednesday, Julius Genachowski, chairman of the FCC, welcomed the announcement and said: “This significant trial will provide an American testbed for the next generation of innovative, high-speed internet apps, devices, and services.”

Google has dabbled before with delivering internet access to consumers, though it has stopped short of becoming a full-scale network provider.

It has built a wi-fi network in its home town of Mountain View, California, to test the potential for city-wide uses for this short-range communication technology.

It also bid in a US wireless auction as a tactic to prod US wireless companies into lowering their potential restrictions against internet services such as those from Google.

Google said that it would use the networks to test high-speed applications, and planned to share any lessons from its deployment of the technology with other network operators.

It added that the location of the networks, to reach between 50,000-500,000 people, would be based on approaches it receives from local officials or individuals.