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Google Fiber has quietly unveiled its own discount Internet plan for the income-challenged that vastly simplifies the hoops consumers have to successfully jump through to enroll.
Relying on Census block and FCC broadband availability data, Google proposes to sell residents of Kansas City living in areas identified as having a sustained digital divide a 25Mbps Internet plan for $15 a month. The new plan is accompanied by totally free connections and service for residents of select subsidized housing — mostly apartment buildings.
The new service offerings will replace Google’s 5Mbps free service option, which was dropped from Google Fiber’s menu this week. Google previously charged residents a $300 installation fee to qualify for free service which proved to be an insurmountable challenge for many paycheck-to-paycheck residents who did not realize Google would also accept $10 monthly installments for 30 months.
The choice of 25Mbps happens to coincide with the FCC’s official minimum speed designation to qualify as “broadband.” Google hopes the low-priced broadband option will inspire residents living in broadband-sparse neighborhoods to sign up for service. Currently, most low-income residents not subscribed to fixed broadband rely on their cell phones for Internet access. Google makes its money providing search results and accompanying contextual advertising, and home broadband service remains an important part of Google’s ad revenue stream.
Google’s plan avoids the intrusive qualification requirements most phone and cable companies insist on to receive discounted Internet service. Comcast, among others, demands evidence of school-age children enrolled in the federal school lunch program, and forbids participation to current customers who manage to already scrape together enough to pay for broadband service. Google’s plan relies on a potential customer’s location and avoids income tests and paperwork, opening its program to childless couples, young singles, and seniors.
Google’s $15 Broadband plan features:
- $15 a month
- 25Mbps upload and download speeds
- No data caps
- No application process or contracts
- No equipment rental and no construction or installation fees
Residents of Kansas City can determine their eligibility on or after May 19, 2016 on this website.
This 25 Mbit/s plan is neat! It’s my speed. Though it’s sad to see Google’s “free” 5 Mbit/s plan gone, which had a hefty ~CA$383 setup fee but paid for itself in just ten months, I think Google’s 25 Mbit/s plan for just CA$19.17/month is great for those without CA$63.91 (0.1 Gbit/s) or CA$89.48 (1 Gbit/s). Canadian ISPs cost $68, $88 and $150, often capped, like our indie ISPs’ $40 for 25 Mbit/s and $63 for 0.1 Gbit/s plans.
It’s good to see such nice plans from Google. I wonder if tech giants Apple and Microsoft will follow suit.
The bigger story is Google dropping their nearly-free internet service. Now you’re not getting internet any cheaper than DSL! And that’s only if you qualify… What happened to all the handouts they got from local governments in exchange for the public service part of this If you’re poor, $15/mo vs $0/mo is a big deal, while 5Mbps vs 25Mbps is a minor detail (who cares if their Youtube rowsing is in highdef?). But 5Mbps vs no internet service at all, that hurts. Bring back low-cost, entry-level internet access! And StopTheCap, please tell your web admin that commenting is broken on… Read more »
Ev i guess you cant read because it says its only $15 a MO and there are NO qualifications you just pay the bill once a month.
also i guess you missed the part where they did 25/25 to comply with the FCCs Minimum broadband spec. they could have made it 5/5 just for you for $15 a month but they are practically giving away their internet at that speed.
You fail pretty badly at trolling here because what google is doing is a good thing.
I guess I truly don’t get why Google won’t directly compete with other ISP’s price tiers. I’m hearing neighbors complain that they can’t get much more than 300Mbps out of their PCs, and everyone else expressing shock when they finally learn they can’t get gigabit wifi. They should have offered tiers that match the true capabilities of typical consumer equipment; 5, 20, 50, 100 and 300 Mbps. I’m deliriously happy with my new gigabit service, but it would make much more economical sense for us to have 500Mbps service for $35-40 or so than ~1000Mbps at $73.71/mo. Also, GF could… Read more »
Google has also started offering 100Mbps tier for $50/month in Kansas City, but that’s almost certainly as far as they’re going to. They want people to get Gigabit service, and if they offered 500Mpbs for $35, nobody would buy Gigabit, since 500Mbps is more than enough for almost everyone’s needs at this point. You misunderstand Google’s reason for getting into the ISP game in the first place. It’s not to offer the same service as the existing ISP for a lower price, it’s to change the game completely, by making Gigabit Internet the new standard. Then there are the realities… Read more »
@ tacitus: I absolutely have heard that explanation of GF’s “strategy”, and it’s CRAP. Here’s why: If Google wants to make gigabit the “new standard” then they shouldn’t price it higher than most people can afford, nor do such a poor job of preparing folks to be let down when their real-world experience falls way short. Folks who don’t own screaming-hot i7’s with datacenter NICs find they’re paying $74/mo for 250-300Mbps. Still better than $60/mo for 50Mbps, but they won’t really feel the difference on their wifi and with their older CPUs. The “free” tier is a sick joke. So… Read more »
I wish Google would bring it’s fiber internet to Boston MA. I’d prefer Google Fiber over Verizon FIOS. They have gigabit speeds, whereas, verizon fios only has a maximum speeds of 500 mbps.
What on earth are you doing that requires more than 500Mbps?
What are you talking about?
I was looking forward to Google Fiber coming to Atlanta. I was hoping to just pay the $300 set up free and get free 5mbps internet for life. As a low income person I really can’t afford their lowest offering in Atlanta, that being $50/mo. I can afford to save up $300 for the install though. It would just take a year or two to save up. But apparently they’re not offering that deal anymore. So most of my enthusiasm about Google Fiber is gone. I don’t see why they can’t offer at least a $20/mo low speed internet for… Read more »