AT&T Mocks Google Fiber

AT&T Senior VP mocks Google Fiber. Stop me if you've heard this joke before:

Does the unfulfilled promise of an Internet Service Provider leave you searching for another option?
If so, don't be surprised. Making you search is what they do best.

Ha ha - get it? Google? Making you search!

Eric Boyer from AT&T does make a good point (although slightly veiled). Google Fiber did underestimate how difficult the actual building of fiber networks is in the real world. It is one of those areas where there is truly no substitute for experience.

Google Fiber Presses Pause

Google Fiber presses the pause button. Quite frankly I'm not surprised.

I think Google Fiber underestimated three things in regards to building fiber networks:

1. It is very difficult to make a business case for anyone to build a profitable network that is overbuilding an existing provider.

2. The price point of $70 for a Gig of bandwidth was not realistic. Doubly unrealistic when the existing cable company can drop pricing on a temporary basis while locking in subs to term contracts.

3. The utility company right of way and make-ready process are, to paraphrase Thomas Paine, the times that try men's souls.

An interesting fallout over this pause will be to watch how this affects Corning's stock price in the mid-term. Corning peaked about a year ago when incumbents were ordering glass left and right to fend off Google Fiber proposed builds.

Google Fiber

AT&T took some not so subtle shots at Google Fiber recently. This happening among rumors of Google Fiber downsizing it's personnel and moving to a more wireless-centric solution. Everyone seems to be asking what's up with Google Fiber? An interesting observation from the AT&T post:

February 2010: Google announces its intent to build ultra-high-speed fiber-fed broadband networks with plans to serve around five million subscribers in five years; 1100 cities respond to Google’s Request for Information in an effort to become a Google Fiber City.
Today: Google Fiber has deployed a fiber network in parts of seven out of the 1100 interested cities, but otherwise hits the pause button as Google Fiber learns something we’ve known for over a hundred years – deploying communications networks is hard and takes an enormous amount of time, money and skilled labor.

Emphasis added. There are a lot of risks and hurdles in building a fiber network. An interesting take-away for many municipalities looking to build their own FTTH projects. Don't underestimate the risks and costs involved in such projects!

Google Fiber, Net Neutrality and Just What Makes a Business Customer?

Some very interesting points and questions raised in this article.

I completely agree that not just businesses are running servers connected to the broadband. Just having a server is not a good way to help define business class service anymore. If you think of it even a set top box with DVR is a network server.

Even though the article doesn't mention it - even time of day parameters from the past don't work in the new Internet age. It used to be between 9-5:00 you'd have heavy business usage and then after that you'd start seeing heavy residential usage. That worked great for providers who wanted to serve both markets. But with more and more people telecommuting or working odd hours - that line is blurred beyond being useful in distinguishing types of users.

A business telecommuter doing emails, VoIP and the occasional video-conference is probably going to use less bandwidth than a home-schooled kid or a stay at home mom trading cooking recipes. New definitions are needed.

The Genius of Google Fiber

Yes - Google fiber has had a ripple effect but I wonder if this is unintended or genius.

Google is not going to make buckets of money from being a fiber to the home (FTTH) provider. They make their money by selling ads on the Internet and the higher the bandwidth speeds and more readily bandwidth happens to be across the country - the more ads on the Internet people will see and the more money Google will rake in.

Has their fiber installation in Kansas City and their planned systems in Austin and Provo caused other providers to roll out more upgrades in more areas? Yes. A great kick in the ass for fiber deployment.

Genius!

Google Selling Motorola STB Business

The Wall Street Journal has reported that Google is accepting bids for their Motorola STB (set top box) business unit.

This is not surprising to anyone who has been paying attention. When Google Fiber decided to use another product rather than the in-house Motorola STB for their Kansas City deployment - the writing was on the wall.

Google and Motorola STB's

There are lots of rumors floating around about Google wanting to sell the Motorola Mobility Set Top Box business. Meanwhile Motorola is releasing new STB's geared for Microsoft MediaRoom.

That's all well and good but the real story I want to see explained is why Google Fiber did not choose to use Motorola STB's in its Kansas City deployment. All three stories are connected.