More than 200 years ago Adam Smith argued that consumers are moved by individual self-interest and competition. If consumers are presented with a product that is better than anyone else's, their self-interest and competition will drive them to purchase that item. A case in point is Google Fiber, and the effect it is having in the industry as a whole. Before Google (News - Alert) announced this initiative, many of the established companies didn't see the point of having a gigabit-speed network. Even after the positive response Google received from virtually everyone, these companies were still not on board.
In an open editorial in the Philadelphia Inquirer in May 2013, Comcast (News - Alert) executive vice president David L. Cohen showed little enthusiasm for the gigabit speed saying, "Most websites can't deliver content as fast as current networks move, and most U.S. homes have routers that can't support the speed already available to the home."
Several months before that, when asked about the Google gigabit speed, Time Warner (News - Alert) Cable's Chief Financial Officer Irene Esteves said at a Morgan Stanley Technology Conference, "We're in the business of delivering what consumers want, and to stay a little ahead of what we think they will want."
Fast forward several months later and both companies have implemented gigabit initiatives to address their customers. While they might not be addressing residential customers at the time, they nonetheless have entered into the fray. Comcast has rolled out hundreds of new Wi-Fi hot spots in Utah and Kansas, the two locations with Google Fiber, in the hopes of making a dent.
Google continues to make progress in the cities that it has promised to introduce the gigabit speed network, but more importantly it has pushed -- or better yet, forced -- the market to start offering consumers a better product.
No matter what Google's intention was to start offering the faster speed, the overall effect has been positive. National and regional companies are starting to provide FTTH (Fiber to the Home) with faster and faster speeds, with most looking to having gigabit speeds.
The end result is faster speeds, which means a more productive America capable of competing on a global scale with countries such as the Netherlands, South Korea, Japan and others.
Edited by Rory J. Thompson