Google Fiber was supposed to be the future for Louisville in terms of network connectivity. The internet search giant made big plans to expand the Google Fiber network into Louisville but the plan failed to see itself through.
A series of infrastructure issues would plague Google causing much more maintenance than first anticipated. One major problem was fiber cables that just didn’t want to stay buried. Google dug 2″ channels into city streets to bury the cables and back-filled them with a liquid that would solidify. The problem was, the cables just didn’t want to stay put and kept breaking free.
We’re not living up to the high standards we set for ourselves, or the standards we’ve demonstrated in other Fiber cities. We would need to essentially rebuild our entire network in Louisville to provide the great service that Google Fiber is known for, and that’s just not the right business decision for us.
Google
All of these issues have also caused problems for the city of Louisville who now have streets that need repairing and Google’s above ground facilities to deal with. In order to assist the city in taking care of the issues, Google has agreed to pay them US$3.84 million. The money will be paid out to the city over a 20-month span and covers removing fiber cables and the sealant used by Google. It will also take care of removing Google’s above-ground infrastructure.
Google Fiber also agreed to donate $150,000 to the Community Foundation of Louisville to support Metro’s “digital inclusion” efforts, which include “refurbishing used computers for low-income individuals and the enrollment of public housing residents in low-cost internet access through other companies providing service in Louisville,” according to the mayor’s office.
WDRB
What do you think of Google’s settling with the city of Louisville and the failure of Google Fiber there? Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter, or Facebook. You can also comment on our MeWe page by joining the MeWe social network.
[button link=”https://www.wdrb.com/in-depth/google-fiber-to-pay-nearly-million-to-louisville-in-exit/article_d4c86640-5f85-11e9-8876-9f013c02d337.html” icon=”fa-external-link” side=”left” target=”blank” color=”285b5e” textcolor=”ffffff”]Source: WDRB[/button]Last Updated on February 3, 2021.
