(Image Credit: Robert Scoble)
If any company benefits from getting more people online, it’s Google. The company understands this better than most and has already launched its high-speed ISP service in select US markets where demand is strong.
According to telecommunications experts reviewing regulatory filings, Google appears to be testing technology that could replace physical fiber cables with an ultra-fast wireless alternative for its premium internet service.
On Monday, Google submitted an application to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission seeking permission to conduct wireless tests in California across multiple spectrum bands. The heavily redacted filing requests access to rarely used millimeter-wave frequencies capable of transmitting very large amounts of data.
Reports earlier this year suggested Google might collaborate with Verizon on mobile service ambitions. Based on a story from The Information, Google has explored offering wireless service in areas where it already provides fiber broadband, possibly in partnership with the major carrier.
If the tests prove successful, a wireless approach could be a far less expensive way to expand high-speed coverage than the traditional method of digging up streets and installing fiber to each home. In addition to lowering deployment costs, wireless could enable Google to reach more communities more quickly.
The planned tests are scheduled to begin on November 13th and will cover three sites in the San Francisco Bay Area. Those locations reportedly include one in San Mateo and two sites roughly half a mile apart on or near Google’s Mountain View campus. The experiments will use radio transmitters operating across multiple bands: 5.8 GHz, 24.2 GHz, and millimeter-wave ranges at 71–76 GHz and 81–86 GHz.
Innovative companies frequently run multiple technology trials even when there’s no immediate commercial launch planned. Google has a stronger track record than most of turning experimental projects into real products—Android and Google Glass both originated in internal research groups before wider release.
Supporting the idea that Google is serious about these wireless tests is the fact that the FCC application was signed by Craig Barratt, who leads Google’s fiber efforts. That detail lends weight to the possibility this trial could lead to a broader initiative.
Do you think Google should launch an ultra-fast wireless service? Let us know in the comments.