How disruptive could Google Fiber be?

12 Jul

The excellent Bill St Arnaud posts a very interesting analysis today of the Google Fiber project in Kansas City on his blog under the title Google’s secret strategy with the Kansas City Fiber project. In this post, Bill states (a point I’ve made in the past) that it’s hard to imagine Google Fiber being a profitable venture in the usual terms, and that its exemplarity is out the window (somthing I intend to come back to in a blog post I’ve been mulling for a while). Based on his understanding of energy markets, Bill argues that a challenging but potentially successful approach would be for Google to connect everyone for free with a basic level of Google TV ad-driven service and offer energy management services on top.

Knowing as little as Google is willing to share about what they’re actually doing, it’s hard to assess if Bill could be right, but he’s certainly highlighting a scenario I hadn’t thought about that is intriguing and has the ring of truth to it. Well worth a read if you have a few minutes to spare.

  • Luis Filipe

    I understand Bills point but for me it just doesn´t stick. What he is suggesting could be much more easily done using a mobile network under the umbrela of a machine to machine application. No need for fiber for that.

    • fiberevolution

      Luis, as a single purpose technology, I agree with you. But assuming no one else if offering such services in KC right now, then that could be an additional revenue stream nonetheless.

  • DaveG

    I thought Google had dropped their Energy Management project?  I have no idea how that company survives the fragmentation of focus that is evident there! 

    • fiberevolution

      Good point. I’ve always been concerned about what would happen if they didn’t get the success they hope for with Google Fiber…