According to a report, since Google Fiber has fallen short of its subscriber goals, the Google parent Alphabet is pushing the company to downsize in an effort to cut costs.
Google Fiber Not Meeting Its Goals
According to CNET, it is time consuming to build a fiber-based network. For this reasons, Google Fiber has encountered difficulties to meet its subscriber goals.
Since 2010, when Google Fiber was founded, the company failed to meet its customer base expansion goals despite providing its services in several cities. The main reason is due to the fact that building a fiber-based network has proved not only more time consuming but also more expensive than expected.
Google Fiber Downsizing
According to a report published Thursday, August 25, by The Information, Alphabet co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page are not happy with the costs and rollout of Google Fiber. Page reportedly ordered last month Google Fiber chief Craig Barratt to significantly reduce the cost of bringing the service to its customers and keep just a half from the original size of the team.
After implementing Page's demands, the customer acquisition costs will be reduced to just one tenth of their current level. The unit's workforce will come down to 500 from 1,000 people.
Google Fiber Is Now Called Access
Google Fiber bought in June a wireless internet service provider called Webpass. The acquisition is part of Google Fiber's strategy to focus on wireless technology to push in new cities and accelerate its current deployments. In a filing with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that outlines plans to experiment with the 3,6 GHz frequency band, Google Fiber also hinted at a shift to wireless technology.
According to The Verge, the unit known previously as Google Fiber is now called Access. The ultra-fast Google internet unit is shifting its focus from internet delivered through fiber optic cables to wireless technology.
