What would you do if you suddenly could get access to speeds of up to 1 Gbps for your home or business Internet connection? That"s the question that a lot of citizens in both Kansas City, Kansas and neighboring Kansas City, Missouri are asking as Google ramps up the construction of their planned fiber Internet network. The service is expected to launch in at least part of those two metro areas sometime in 2012.
The Kansas City Star web site reports that some businesses and organizations are trying to figure out how to take advantage of this super-fast Internet service in order to attract more businesses and services. Some have suggested that the network could generate more videoconferencing businesses or perhaps provide for super-fast streaming of concerts and entertainment events.
One big problem is that so far Google hasn"t said how much it would charge Kansas City residents to access the 1 Gbps network. If the price is too expensive it could keep some from paying to use the service. However, if the price is competitive with the normal broadband Internet access from other companies, say $50 a month, that could spur individuals and businesses to sign up.
In the end, very few people here in the US have access to those kinds of Internet speeds. Placing that amount of bandwidth in a large metro area like Kansas City could lead to that Midwest city becoming a huge center for high tech and computing companies if the price is right. And, if this experiment is successful you can bet that other big cities in the US will look into offering similar networks in order to spur high tech growth.