Google connectivity... coming soon?
Not content with being the world's No.1 online search engine and one of the biggest presences on the Internet, Google is planning on also providing online connectivity by becoming a network provider.
By offering super-fast, fibre-optic broadband connections to thousands of US homes, with speeds of up to 1Gbps, Google has the potential to become a major player in the provider arena.
On the company's official blog, Google said they would focus on competing with other providers on price and that they would offer speeds much faster than those on offer. They also said they'd be offering applications that would be able to take advantage of the speeds.
"We are planning to build and test ultra high-speed broadband networks in a small number of trial locations across the United States," the online statement said.
"We plan to offer service at a competitive price to at least 50,000 and potentially up to 500,000 people. We'll deliver internet speeds more than 100 times faster than what most Americans have access to today," it continued.
Fibre-optic connections
Currently Google uses fibre-optic cables to connect its data centres, speeding up searches and lowering costs. The fact that it plans to implement this system to consumer homes could prove to be a huge draw to those fed up with inconsistent and slow connects.
Google have stated that the network will be available for any service provider to use and the internet giant is asking interested parties, from local government as well as members of the public, to sign up to the plan.
Of course while the plan has its benefits for users, it is simply the next step in Google's seemingly unstoppable aim to control all areas of web users experiences.
This week saw them try to get on the social media bandwagon with Google Buzz, and their attempts to control networks and connections is just the latest step.
Google's network impact in the US could be massive; while President Obama promised to spend $7.2 billion on new broadband infrastructure, that money was for smaller broadband providers and municipalities.
Google's success could all come down to how many hands their network would be able to service, but the last time anyone checked, Google wasn't exactly short on finances and resources.
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