In March of 2010 Rapid City Public Works Committee authorized the submission of a request for Rapid City to be chosen for Google's experimental high-speed broadband network. The project is called Google Fiber for Communities, and 1,100 communities across the country responded, significantly more than Google had expected.
In the original press release from Google about the program they stated
We're planning to build and test ultra high-speed broadband networks in a small number of trial locations across the United States. We'll deliver Internet speeds more than 100 times faster than what most Americans have access to today with 1 gigabit per second, fiber-to-the-home connections. We plan to offer service at a competitive price to at least 50,000 and potentially up to 500,000 people.
Our goal is to experiment with new ways to help make Internet access better and faster for everyone. Here are some specific things that we have in mind:
- Next generation apps: We want to see what developers and users can do with ultra high-speeds, whether it's creating new bandwidth-intensive "killer apps" and services, or other uses we can't yet imagine.
- New deployment techniques: We'll test new ways to build fiber networks, and to help inform and support deployments elsewhere, we'll share key lessons learned with the world.
- Openness and choice: We'll operate an "open access" network, giving users the choice of multiple service providers. And consistent with our past advocacy, we'll manage our network in an open, non-discriminatory and transparent way.
Yesterday, December 15 2010, Google released a statement saying that the announcement of the chosen community is being delayed due to the unexpected interest generated by the program. The press release from newly installed Milo Medin, Vice President, Access Services states:
"We’re sorry for this delay, but we want to make sure we get this right. To be clear, we’re not re-opening our selection process—we simply need more time to decide than we’d anticipated. Stay tuned for an announcement in early 2011."
Welcome to the team Mr. Medin, and hang in there Rapid City. We could still get that uber-fast internet from Google.
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