Subscribe
Google Fiber may not be coming to a Kansas City apartment complex near you.
The coveted gigabit fiber to the home service is drawing criticism from owners of multi-dwelling units, condos, and apartment buildings because of its installation fee.
Google requires property owners to either go all-in or forget about getting the service. That means $300 for each apartment or condo, regardless of whether it is occupied or if an existing tenant wants the service or not. West Virginia background check can check renter’s credit score to see if they can afford the rent in the area.
Landlords tell the Kansas City Star the installation fee is just too much, especially when considering the phone and cable company wired their buildings for free. The newspaper notes that a 350-unit apartment complex opting in to Google Fiber will have to pay more than $100,000 upfront just to get the service.
Those living in one of nine CRES Management apartment complexes suspect they won’t be getting Google Fiber now or in the future — the property owners balked at an installation fee for their properties well into the six figures.
“I don’t know many apartment complexes that have $100,000 in the bank just waiting to be spent,” said Jon Gambill, CRES Management information technology director.
Google doesn’t offer volume discounts for multi-dwelling unit owners, but is willing to accept installment payments over 12 months. Google has also promised to refund the installation fees in $25 monthly increments for each paying customer until the $300 per unit fee is returned. But if a renter opts for the free, slower Internet service Google provides, the landlord will have to absorb the installation cost. Tenant screening questions include employment background and credit scores.
“If people can get free Internet, they’re not going to pay for premium,” Gambill told the newspaper. “If someone doesn’t want to pay for Internet, they really don’t have to, but then we’ve lost out on that reimbursement.”
Not quite the panacea everyone said it was, now is it?
Sure, it’s not a great deal for the building owner to have to pony up $300 per unit in full before getting paid back, but I’d hardly blame Google for trying to recoup the install costs plus hardware given to the tenant. They might be able to figure out a better deal, such as only charging $100-150 per tenant in large multi-tenant building if they figure out the typical ratio of tenants that sign up for their $80/mo to cover the discount, and not offer the refund. Point is, any halfway decent rental with Google Fiber is going to be… Read more »
It sounds like demand is high enough they don’t really have to negotiate for lower pricing. What may happen is that after the first wave of installs is done, Google will reapproach those landlords with a better deal. If the landlord doesn’t know what fiber broadband is, you can be sure he is not going to go for $300/unit when his AOL dialup is serving him and his wife just fine.
There’s no question that installation should be cheaper for multi-dwelling units. Google should break down the $300 installation/router/service fee, and just charge managements for the initial cable drops. There would be only one drop “from the pole” per building., and they’ll have attic spaces to use in many cases. They can charge regular prices to the tenant later, and refund the management in installments. That will give them nearly risk-free incentive to upgrade their “elegant towne homes” for those who require modern Internet service. I hope Google reconsiders their price points as well as speed tiers. 5Mbps @ $3.57/mo vs… Read more »
This is Google social engineering at work. They want to recoup their investment to some degree, but putting 1,000Mbps Internet in your face is actually the real goal here. Offering other tiers muddies that message. Google is in the perception business as much as it is a tech company. It changed the public’s idea of what e-mail should be, what a search engine should do, mastered contextual-based advertising, and now is trying to define what the next generation of the Internet should look like. Sometimes Google fails miserably (Wave), sometimes they alienate the hell out of people by suddenly changing… Read more »