Portland, Oregon, is known as the city that is stuck in the early 1990s, but that could all change with coming of Google Fiber to the area. Google has been slowly rolling out its Fiber network across the United States, and several ISPs are already feeling pressured to either match or surpass what the company is offering.
Google plans to invest around $300 million in a permanent fiber infrastructure in Portland. We understand that no other company has made similar commitments, as per Portland's Community Technology Director Mary Beth Henry. This is a big boon for both Google and the citizens of Oregon, and we expect others to follow in the coming months or years.
The agreement is not yet a done deal, as Google is still in the planning stages. The company will decide before the end of 2014 on whether or not it should go ahead with the Google Fiber in Portland and some suburban areas, which includes Lake Oswego, Gresham, Beaverton, Tigard, and Hillsboro.
Right now Google is examining local regulations, regional topography and utility poles to determine whether or not its fiber service would be feasible both financially and technically in Portland. It's a big bet, one we see Google going forward as it attempts to make high-speed fiber Internet available to every single household in the United States.
Interestingly enough, Google plans to offer up to a speed of 1Gbps, and a free 5Mbps plan for those who pay a $300 construction fee. The company even plans to offer three free Wi-Fi for outdoor public areas, and the cost of this will come from Google itself. The free Wi-Fi service will only go on the initial term of this Franchise.
"Google's plan to provide free broadband citywide after an installation fee with no income threshold in any areas they have constructed vastly exceeds the much more limited commitments of all the incumbents," Henry said. The company is also mulling to roll out a free gigabit Internet service to around a hundred organizations serving communities with low penetration rates.
It is not certain how much money Google will charge customers, but we do know the company plans to pay the city five percent of its gross revenue each year.
