'Game of Gigs' Analysis Cites Cable's Defensive Response Toward Top Speeds

Gig.U singles out "Google Fiber" as "the prime force in driving" the increasing gig announcements from competitive providers.

"Google's entry into the next generation broadband market is the single greatest input driving a number of competitive response," says a report from Gig.U. "If Google were to withdraw or even just indicate that it was not proceeding further, incumbents and others would likely slow down their own efforts and progress would likely stall." Gig.U’s Blair Levin interprets some recent gigabit efforts by cable and telecom giants as representing "a positive change in their perceptions of both the opportunity and the threat" by community groups and rival companies, such as Google. "A year ago ISPs such as Cox and Time Warner Cable were antagonistic toward gigabit upgrades," the report says. "They responded to gigabit initiatives with comments suggesting that upgrades were too expensive, and further, that they knew best what their customers wanted." "Now they are singing a different tune," says the report, pulling its punch by saying that this is not a criticism. "Rather they deserve credit for recognizing how the landscape has changed," especially "the "poplar demand for faster speeds." The report notes that Time Warner Cable plans to deploy "TWC Maxx" service in seven markets in 2015, delivering speeds up to six times faster than current facilities. "Though TWC won't be offering gigabit speeds, the significantly faster speeds will be a drastic improvement over current offerings," the report says.

Gig.U was formed to help break that logjam. The results so far have been impressive, but the game is far from over. "We think the years 2015 and 2016 will prove decisive in achieving our goal," the report concludes, "but only if we, and others, spend this year with our foot on the accelerator."