Google picks KCK/KCMO for ultra fast fiber network

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knucklehead
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

Post by knucklehead »

The Q & A with Google on the Business Journal website indicates pricing has not been determined.

Price will be an issue for residential. Plus residential doesn't need that much bandwidth. Particularly given Wyco's demos.

It is possible Google will subsidize residential to allow it to test out new products. However, the logic of testing new products on KCK's residential demos escapes me, since I doubt if it is a stronghold of early adapters.

This kind of bandwidth would attract server farms. They use a lot of electricity and electric rates are low in KC in general (especially compared to the west coast). Some companies may be interested in concentrating servers in the midwest as a move to diversify locations for backup reliability purposes. Server farms don't generate a lot of jobs. In addition, I wonder if most large server farms don't connect directly to the backbone network anyway. A super fast local system can't go any faster than the backbone.

This is a good get for KCK and the metro area. The economic growth implications are unclear and are dependent on Google's strategy.

The clear losers are the cable and telephone companies. Google wants a piece of their revenue and may be willing to use KCK as a loss leader to develop products. Still scratching my head as to why KCK is the place to do that product development.


Since the BPU only has 70,000 customers, part of the attraction may have been the small scale of the roll out
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

Post by ignatius »

It will apparently be free to 'public organizations' but they will charge for all others.  They just said pricing will be 'competitive'.  They are not clear on who gets free access but it appears to be schools and libraries at a minimum, and anyone directly involved with a project like KU Med and perhaps Cerner.

It's possible they may give free access to low income families.  If Google doesn't sponsor that, I could see the Kaufmann Foundation pushing for that.

The real gain for the metro though is that Google is building an R&D lab here to test future apps.  KC will essentially be playing a roll in the future of the internet (apps and services, not just the pipe) and the metro may gain companies who are working with Google on that.
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

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ignatius wrote: The real gain for the metro though is that Google is building an R&D lab here to test future apps.  KC will essentially be playing a roll in the future of the internet (apps and services, not just the pipe) and the metro may gain companies who are working with Google on that.
KCMO should be figuring how out to (a) attract these companies, and (b) how to attract the employees of said companies to live in the city of KCMO.  get creative - tax incentives for moving to KCMO, free vacant lots from the land trust, i dont know.  anything.
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

Post by bbqboy »

KCK get this opportunity and it immediately becomes a "how can KCMO glom onto this."
hilarious.
Last edited by bbqboy on Thu Mar 31, 2011 11:02 am, edited 1 time in total.
ignatius
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

Post by ignatius »

knucklehead wrote: Still scratching my head as to why KCK is the place to do that product development.
Perhaps Google's Grand Plan is to get the have-nots on the Internet too and eliminate the digital divide.  Information empowers the less fortunate.  If anyone knows that and can do something about it, it's Google.
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

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bbqboy wrote: KCK get this opportunity and it immediately becomes a "how can KCMO glom onto this.
hilarious.
of course.  it's a foregone conclusion that KCK will see benefit from this, although it's unclear at this point how that will take shape.  the question then becomes "how will this impact the metro?"  you can bet that JoCo leaders and members of the JoCo business community are already thinking of ways to bring this into JoCo, and as an urban proponent and KCMO worker/resident, i can only hope that KCMO is doing the same.  

to the extent that the KC area becomes something of a magnet for silicon valley type startups, KCMO needs to attract as many of those companies/residents as possible.  KCMO presents a very attractive living option for the urban-inclined folks from other tech centers like the bay area, boston, chicago, etc. - imagine thinking about moving your google-app business to KCK, but don't know anything about the area and your research only directs you to the Village West area or downtown KCK....hmmm...
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

Post by loftguy »

chrizow wrote: of course.  it's a foregone conclusion that KCK will see benefit from this, although it's unclear at this point how that will take shape.  the question then becomes "how will this impact the metro?"  you can bet that JoCo leaders and members of the JoCo business community are already thinking of ways to bring this into JoCo, and as an urban proponent and KCMO worker/resident, i can only hope that KCMO is doing the same.  

to the extent that the KC area becomes something of a magnet for silicon valley type startups, KCMO needs to attract as many of those companies/residents as possible.  KCMO presents a very attractive living option for the urban-inclined folks from other tech centers like the bay area, boston, chicago, etc. - imagine thinking about moving your google-app business to KCK, but don't know anything about the area and your research only directs you to the Village West area or downtown KCK....hmmm...

^Insert hilarious visual from mgsports, here.
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

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ignatius wrote: Perhaps Google's Grand Plan is to get the have-nots on the Internet too and eliminate the digital divide.  Information empowers the less fortunate.  If anyone knows that and can do something about it, it's Google.
Good point.  This also makes it more difficult for companies to get away with throttling specific services, even when they claim to not be doing this.  If Netflix quality is terrible under 1 gbps, you would know that something is fishy.  It is a way (at least temporarily) to avoid having large media companies tied to ISPs dictate how traffic should be funneled.
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

Post by mlind »

It seems like I remember that there is stimulus money for bringing high speed internet to under-served communities. True?  If so, could Google be taking advantage of that?
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

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chrizow wrote: of course.  it's a foregone conclusion that KCK will see benefit from this, although it's unclear at this point how that will take shape.  the question then becomes "how will this impact the metro?"  you can bet that JoCo leaders and members of the JoCo business community are already thinking of ways to bring this into JoCo, and as an urban proponent and KCMO worker/resident, i can only hope that KCMO is doing the same.  

to the extent that the KC area becomes something of a magnet for silicon valley type startups, KCMO needs to attract as many of those companies/residents as possible.  KCMO presents a very attractive living option for the urban-inclined folks from other tech centers like the bay area, boston, chicago, etc. - imagine thinking about moving your google-app business to KCK, but don't know anything about the area and your research only directs you to the Village West area or downtown KCK....hmmm...
But if people in other communities are feeling a little sore this week, well, don?t despair, Google executives said.

The system will expand both regionally and nationally, so Kansas City and other cities could soon feel the love.


Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2011/03/30/27 ... z1ICEMEh9T
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

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mlind wrote: It seems like I remember that there is stimulus money for bringing high speed internet to under-served communities. True?  If so, could Google be taking advantage of that?
I believe that is more aimed at rural communities and cities that are further from large metropolitan areas.  As I understand, KCK would not fall into that category.  This is an upgrade from broadband to super broadband while the stimulus money was more for bringing basic broadband to areas with only dial-up.
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

Post by cityscape »

This is certainly a good thing for KCK and for the entire metro.  Expect to see several companies in the area profit from this.  I think the top four companies that will benefit from this would be:

1.  BATS Exchange - HUGE potential here and they're growing by leaps and bounds.  As they seek to do more individual stock trades they'll certainly benefit from the increased bandwidth.
2.  Cerner - Obvious, rollout of the patient centered electronic medical record is now in sight.  Patients can download their entire chart and share it with other hospitals easily.  Not to mention hospitals can now share data (stripped of patient information of course) with the State, CDC, and research companies.  Lots of potential here.
3.  Garmin - If they can get in good with Google they can revamp Google maps and possibly provide better apps all around.
4.  AMC - If they start thinking ahead of the game they could offer first run movies over the web and only at certain times so basically you could watch Harry Potter 7 part 2 from home on your personal entertainment system and pay a fee to AMC just like you would for tickets.  There's obviously more potential for them if they start upgrading their facilities too. 
mean
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

Post by mean »

ignatius wrote:But this isn't just about the fast pipe.  This is about Google building a framework for nextgen apps and using KCK as its testbed.
Yeah, I think the potential long term relevance of Google's decision is being underestimated. This has the potential to make KCK (and by proxy KC metro) the place to be for internet companies, certainly for datacenters and tech startups, and by proxy for developers and engineers... if Google and KCK play their cards right, this could turn KC into the silicon prairie, and completely re-imagine downtown KCK as the bay area to KC's San Francisco.

Likely? I dunno. But the potential is unreal, particularly considering what this will do for KCK--hopefully downtown KC--in terms of giving them leverage to attract companies from far afield instead of engaging in JoCo style MO poaching.
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

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mean wrote: Yeah, I think the potential long term relevance of Google's decision is being underestimated. This has the potential to make KCK (and by proxy KC metro) the place to be for internet companies, certainly for datacenters and tech startups, and by proxy for developers and engineers... if Google and KCK play their cards right, this could turn KC into the silicon prairie, and completely re-imagine downtown KCK as the bay area to KC's San Francisco.

Likely? I dunno. But the potential is unreal, particularly considering what this will do for KCK--hopefully downtown KC--in terms of giving them leverage to attract companies from far afield instead of engaging in JoCo style MO poaching.
I totally agree.  It definitely depends on how long it takes other places to catch up, but for a time, this will be a very unique part of America technologically. 

Imagine a few people living in San Fran or NYC with a fantastic idea for a new web service, technology, or site.  If they could move to KC, get cheap access to a quality connection, be surrounded by other like-minded startups and venture capitalists looking to invest, get away with cheaper salaries, and offer a much more affordable quality of life, doesn't that sound pretty attractive?  The cost to jump in could be dramatically less here than it is elsewhere.

Even large companies will want to test out future services here.  Wouldn't a new startup like to be on the forefront of the new technologies that are being tested?  It would behoove them to at least have a location in the testbed for all of those services.
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

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what kind of "lead time" is KCK and the region getting on other cities?  Google has made it clear that KCK is just the tip of the iceberg - are they going to announce similar plans in other cities within a few months?  a year?  5 years? 

i dont dispute the magnitude of this technological advancement, but unless KC is the exclusive (or nearly so) location for this technology for at least a few years, i wouldn't think the KC area would gain that much of an advantage over the next few cities that Google partners with?
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

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bobbyhawks wrote: If they could move to KC, get cheap access to a quality connection, be surrounded by other like-minded startups and venture capitalists looking to invest, get away with cheaper salaries, and offer a much more affordable quality of life, doesn't that sound pretty attractive?  The cost to jump in could be dramatically less here than it is elsewhere.
And KC(MO) is way way cooler than Austin or NC.
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

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chrizow wrote: what kind of "lead time" is KCK and the region getting on other cities?  Google has made it clear that KCK is just the tip of the iceberg - are they going to announce similar plans in other cities within a few months?  a year?  5 years? 

i dont dispute the magnitude of this technological advancement, but unless KC is the exclusive (or nearly so) location for this technology for at least a few years, i wouldn't think the KC area would gain that much of an advantage over the next few cities that Google partners with?
I'll be surprised if Google rolls this out to another metro anytime soon.  When they said  another city, they may have meant another in KC metro.  When Google first announced this, they were very specific it's only for one area.

Building fiber networks is very expensive and the KCK one will be an R&D test lab.  I'd bet they will be building the KCK network as an R&D expense/investment, not intended as a profit maker.  If they plan to get into the ISP (internet service provider) biz, I could seem them deploying in other cities.  If this is their R&D lab, they probably mean expanding to metro KC cities.

So yeah... if it's exclusive to KC, this is huge.  If they rollout in other cities, the meaning gets diluted.  If they only roll out to one or two more, there's still major opportunity for KC because we have all major internet highways lanes (the backbone) coming through the metro.  Verizon also just announced a 100Gb backbone upgrade for pipes to KC - only a few cities are getting this.

Read these, it doesn't seem like Google wants to get into the ISP biz...
http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/111027
http://gigaom.com/2010/02/10/google-doe ... le-rouser/
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

Post by mean »

chrizow wrote:what kind of "lead time" is KCK and the region getting on other cities?  Google has made it clear that KCK is just the tip of the iceberg - are they going to announce similar plans in other cities within a few months?  a year?  5 years?  
This is an important question, and the equally important corollary to it is: which other cities are next?

If I had to guess, I'd say it should be around 9 months to 1 year from firing the network up until they begin to expand--and when they do begin to expand, it's going to be to the next most logical and easiest places: KCMO and JoCo. I'd wager KC metro will have 1gbps fiber exclusivity for at least 2-3 years after the initial KCK fiber lights up, while Google builds out their initial KC metro network. After that time, Google or some other company will begin building out similar networks in other metros. But in that 2-3 year timeframe, shit could change dramatically.
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

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mandatory reading for city leaders in KCK and KCMO:

Image

it is too bad that our fair cities have to date not done too much to facilitate the theories espoused in mr. florida's book, but i think Google's plan creates an enticing "shit or get off the pot" moment for the twin KCs.  if KCMO can get a light rail plan on the near horizon, expand the 20th st. bike lanes to the rest of the city, create startup-friendly business policies designed to attract said businesses to the urban core, etc., we might be able to undo the stagnation of the Funk years and downturn and be on a fast track to awesome.  
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Re: Google picks KCK for ultra fast fiber network

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chrizow wrote:
fast track to awesome.  
I vote that we make this the metro areas motto.

Might even tattoo that puppy.
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