Google Fiber Fail

I wrote way back in 2012 about Google Fiber.  Although that post focused on the marketing hype associated with Google providing 1Gbps Internet service, it did hint that Google was taking on physical infrastructure issues that could have major impacts to service.

The new installation techniques employed by Google and not tested by decades of real-world installations have come back to haunt Google and more importantly their complete customer base in Louisville, Kentucky.   Google attempted to take a shortcut to the installation of fiber with a technique that directly exposes fiber to the harsh realities of the environment.  This new method uses shallow slit trenching of fiber directly into the asphalt street pavement  and then it is covered with an epoxy - what could possibly go wrong?



Unlike concrete (which has its own issues),

asphalt is not solid or stable.  Asphalt moves and cracks. Years of layers of pavement generate layers that capture water, freeze and become potholes that are the bane of car tires everywhere.  The situation becomes worse depending on the combination of the type of ground under the pavement, weather, and very importantly they types and frequency of truck traffic.  What was the thought process that is approach was going to last a year, let alone the 10 to 20 year set-and-forget typically required to meet fiber or cable plant cost effectiveness?  You can actually see cracks and repairs in the pavement in the picture of Google installing fiber in Louisville.   Again, what were they thinking?

Although the Cable companies (the MSOs) use shortcut techniques of direct-bury of coaxial cable in the ground, this approach has cable systems that have the benefit of years of improvements and well known maintenance needs.  In general, although segments may fail, there are generally no regionally-wide systematic plant failures that require the complete re-installation of cable or fiber.

Google may have a fail-fast (or relatively fast if you are tracking Google's set of messaging applications) approach based on "Internet Time', but in this case, not only did they fail, there is no recovery enabled by the upgrade or download of an Android or iPhone app.  They created a false narrative that there was a shortcut to conventional installation approaches without performing the long-term testing that is the generally hallmark of stable and reliable telecommunications systems.

Finally, unlike other companies that plan for long-term commitments to their customers, Google Fiber is apparently leaving virtually all their Louisville customers forever.  Maybe Google will finally figure-out that although they can fix or abandon applications without significant damage to their main advertising-based revenue, failing at the physical layer to a customer is something that the customer will not soon forget.