Google is planning a multi-terabit undersea communications cable across the Pacific Ocean for launch in 2009, according to a report from Commsday.
The Unity cable has been under development for several months, and Google is said to have met with Telstra (Australia’s largest telco) and Asia Netcomm in Sydney last week. The cable would run to Australia via Guam and Hawaii.
Interchange cable fees have always been a large issue for Australasian telco’s, with accusations from Australia and Asian countries that they are treated unfairly by US providers in terms of cost for data. In Australia at least, the cost of internet access is significantly higher that in the United States. Google’s move to provide a competitive Pacific Cable service could slash data costs for countries including Australia, Indonesia and even Singapore and Malaysia.
In the United Kingdom, Google is considering a move into the U.K. wireless market after Ofcom (the U.K.’s telecommunications regulator) unveiled plans to liberalize parts of the country’s mobile phone radio spectrum.
According to a Guardian Report, acquiring the spectrum in Britain would allow Google to launch its own full mobile phone service or push for the sort of open standards-based wireless broadband network it is seeking to provide in the United States.
gPhone here we come…
Google and phones? This spells disaster any way you look at it.
You see Microsoft does not enev officially recognize the existence of Google, so how can we possiblly use the phone service of a non-existant company.
Google (if you want to call it that) will fail!
http://fakesteveballmer.blogspot.com
Reason #189302 that I love Google.
interesting, but setting up one of these networks is going to be wrought with technical issues that will be new to google. the standing telcos may suck, but they have working networks that can incorpoate google’s features faster than google can incorporate their infrastructure.
trying to take on wireless may be a shark-jumping moment for the company
remember when free google wifi was going to change the bay area? still waiting….
In a few years you’ll drive your Google to the Google to buy more Googles for your Google
Word Hugger, was thinking that myself when I read this article.
The biggest problem with this is that Google is in talks with Telstra!!!
Telstra is one of the biggest communication problems in Australia.
Please Google, talk to the good guys at Internode. Telstra iare the “WE LOVE DOING EVIL” of Australian telecommunications and broadband.
Anybody wanna bet which ones of these grandiose plans will finally break Google’s back?!?!
Hopefully it will benefit the guys down under as they are already long suffers of stuttering broadband speeds. I realised the magnitude of their internet costs when they some Australian guys commented that the Comcast “cap” would be already exceeding what they pay a premium price for.
@ Jason: Best Google quote ever! I think i may have hurt something badly from laughing at that one. Thanks.
Nice quote
http://vidsonly.blogspot.com
Jason, i couldn’t stop laughing, this is so true.