The Wall Street Journal reported that search giant Google Inc. (GOOGL) is set to expand its high-speed Internet service through its fiber-optic network to four new metro areas including North Carolina, Atlanta, Charlotte and Tennessee.
Google’s ultra-high speed service named Google Fiber is already available in Kansas City, Texas, Austin, and Provo, Utah. Google launched its high speed Internet service named Google Fiber in Kansas City, MO in Sep 2012.
Per recent reports, Google Fiber will reach Atlanta, Charlotte, NC, Raleigh-Durham, NC and Nashville, TN in the next few days. Google has remained mum on the reports.
It is expected that Google will sell the service at the same price as Kansas City that is, it will offer gigabit internet for around $80 per month. The second plan comes at a price of $120.0 and offers TV service, a digital video recorder and a set-top box along with a tablet-computer remote control.
According to Global Industry Analysts, Inc. (GIA) reports of Mar 2014, the fiber optic components market is expected to reach $80.6 billion by 2018 globally. Fiber optic technology is witnessing decent growth as the technology helps speed up data transfer. Advanced applications, PCs and network servers demand high speed that optical fiber cables can deliver.
Google has been considering expanding its Fiber service for some time now. In Feb 2014, Google announced plans to take Fiber to nine new metro areas. Besides the abovementioned cities, these include Salt Lake City, San Antonio, Phoenix, Portland and San Jose.
If the reports are true, Google can bank on its speed to attract users. This can open another growth avenue outside search for the company as speed has been limiting the consumption of video and other data-heavy activities through the Internet. Only time will tell whether Google can make it commercially viable or not.
Google has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-ranked stocks include Ellie Mae, Inc. (ELLI) Expedia Inc. (EXPE), and Cree, Inc. (CREE), all sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
Be the first to comment