Google Curbs Expansion of Fiber Optic Network, Cutting Jobs

Alphabet, the parent company of Google, is signaling a strategy shift for one of its most ambitious and costly efforts: bringing blazing-fast web connections to homes across America. The company is curbing the expansion of its high-speed fiber optic internet network and reducing staff in the unit responsible for the work.

Alphabet did not provide an exact number for the jobs that will be cut. Craig Barratt, chief executive of Access, the Alphabet division containing Google Fiber, also said he planned to step down because the company was shifting to new technologies and methods of deploying high-speed internet. No replacement was announced. Barratt, an Alphabet senior vice president, said he would remain an adviser to the company. The company’s fiber optic internet and television are currently available in eight metro areas, including Kansas City, Atlanta, Nashville and Salt Lake City.