School officially starts this week for many schools in Kansas City—so we’ve decided to celebrate this annual milestone with a “Back to School Day” of our own.
Join us this Sunday, August 19th, at the Fiber Space where we’ll be hosting demonstrations and answering questions about what Google Fiber means for education in Kansas City. We’ve also lined up some unique local entertainment and treats for guests, including storytelling via telepresence, face painting, special Google Fiber schwag and of course, food.
If you’re interested in the impact that Google Fiber can have on education and you can’t wait to join us on Sunday, you can learn more now. Check out this blog post about technology and education, written by Dr. Cynthia Lane, superintendent of Kansas City, Kan. Public Schools. You can also tune in on our YouTube channel to hear some thoughts from fellow Kansas Citians.
Please drop in and join us on Sunday and help spread the word to other faculty, students, and parents!
Event Recap:
Back to School Day at the Fiber Space
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Noon to 6:00PM
1814 Westport Rd. Kansas City, MO


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Posted by Rachel Hack, Community Manager, Google Fiber

Ed. Note: From time to time, we invite guests to post on our Fiber blog. Today we’re welcoming Dr. Cynthia Lane, superintendent of the Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools. Cindy has over 30 years of experience in education, mostly in Kansas City, and is an advocate for leveraging technology in classrooms to create a better learning experience for students. She’s joining us now to talk about how the Internet can help enhance education for Kansas City students.
Almost 100 years ago, the poet Kahlil Gibran wrote of children: “...Their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.” When I think about the students in the Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools and about their futures, I realize that the world that they are growing into will be very much different than the world that my generation grew into. Life moves forward, not backward, and it is our job to help our students move forward into their world.
To do this, we have a goal as a system: “Every student will graduate prepared for college and careers in a global society, and at every level, students will be on-track and on-time for success.” One of the things that every student will need to graduate prepared for college and careers is a strong experience with and ability to use technology. Unfortunately, in a district where more than 85% of our students are eligible for free/reduced lunch, many of our students would not ordinarily have access to technology at home. That is the reason that, back in 2007, our district made the decision to lease a laptop computer for every high school student.
Now in the sixth year of the Laptop for Learning program, our students have used their laptops to move away from being merely “consumers” of information ten years ago, to being “producers” of information and knowledge today. Among other things, they have used their computers to create impressive multi-media presentations, to design provocative works of art, and to sequence DNA in a plant that had never been sequenced before.
Even with this tremendous power in their hands, many of our students have suffered by not having 24/7 access to the full power of technology that comes from having access to the Internet. For that reason, I was thrilled when I learned that Google Fiber was going to bring high-speed connectivity to Kansas City, Kansas. Having access to blazing-fast Internet speeds, both at school and at home, will open up our students’ lives and accelerate their learning, in a number of ways.
First, it will help to connect them to the world, allowing them to use technology both to see the world and to bring the world to them. Next, it will allow us to “flip” the classroom, giving students access to high-quality videos at home, where they can learn at their own pace, while classroom time can be used for practice, working collaboratively with other students under the guidance of their instructors.
Finally, it will help us to share all of the wonderful things happening in our schools with our community and the world. We will be able to broadcast musical and theatrical performances, debate and forensic tournaments, athletic events, and even academic “assessments,” where students demonstrate their knowledge of a subject through a live “demonstration.”
High-speed fiber will make a tremendous difference for this community and for our students. I am thrilled that Kansas City, Kansas has been given the opportunity to participate in the beginning of this amazing revolution.
Posted by Dr. Cynthia Lane, Superintendent of the Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools

If you love TV—and want to learn more about Google Fiber TV—then today’s blog post will be right up your alley.
On our website we’ve updated our Plans & Pricing page to be clearer about which channels will be offered with our Gigabit + TV package. Right now there are about 185 channels included, and we’ll continue to add more of your favorites over the next few months. So, for $120, our Gigabit + TV subscribers will get all of these channels, along with a new Nexus 7 tablet (which doubles as your new remote) and ultra fast Gigabit Internet. You’ll also get HD content and a DVR with 2TB of storage that can record up to 8 shows at a time for no extra charge. And remember, for this package we’re waiving the $300 construction fee.
For our TV customers who are also movie fans, there’s more. We’re excited to offer both Starz and Showtime as optional add-on packages. Both packages are full of popular HD movie channels, with enough action, drama, and family-oriented programming to keep movie lovers happy for years. Our Gigabit + TV customers can add on 17 Starz channels for an additional $10 per month. They can also add on 11 Showtime channels for an additional $10 per month.
Finally, our TV service already offers some great Spanish-language programming. But we’ll also have some additional popular Hispanic channels available for an additional $5 per month, including Univision tlnovelas, Bandamax, and Telehit.
In summary, here are the three new add-on packages that will be available for our Gigabit + TV customers:
• Starz ($10/month for Gigabit + TV customers): Starz, Starz Cinema, Starz Comedy, Starz Edge, Starz in Black, Starz Kids and Family, Encore, Encore Action, Encore Español, Encore Family, Encore Love, Encore Drama, Encore Suspense, Encore Westerns, IndiePlex, MoviePlex, RetroPlex
• Showtime ($10/month for Gigabit + TV customers): Showtime, Sho2, Sho Beyond, Showtime Extreme, Showtime Family Zone, Sho Next, Showtime Showcase, Sho Women, Flix, The Movie Channel, The Movie Channel Xtra
• Hispanic ($5/month for Gigabit + TV customers): Univision tlnovelas, FOROTv, Telehit, Bandamax, Ritomoson Latino, De Película, De Película Clásico
All of these channels are also listed on our website, which we’ll continue to update with more information as we add new programming. Stay tuned!
Posted by Larry Yang, Senior Product Manager, Google Fiber

As Director of Service Delivery for Google Fiber (a.k.a Customer Service), I’ve been thinking a lot about you, Kansas City. I joined the Fiber team last September after almost 10 years in sales & operations at Google because I wanted to treat you better. Sure, I was excited to improve support in a historically service-challenged industry. But most of all I was excited to transform your day, especially when something needs fixing. From sign-up through payment and installation, customer support can be better. Much better.
I bet I know what bothers you because it bugs me too. I don’t want to wait on hold. I don’t want to talk to a phone system. I want to talk to one human who knows the answer and can solve my problem quickly. I also want good chat and email options for the times when I can’t talk. When you come to my house, I want you to respect my time and property. And please give me an option of somewhere local where I can talk to you face-to-face. Respect me, and I’ll reward you with my business for years to come.
Day by day, we’ve been making this possible. I hired a great team—a close-knit combination of Google Fiber team members spread across Mountain View, Austin and Kansas City. These are all people who have something to prove; we want to solve problems and change your mind about customer support. We’re training our whole team on friendly processes and smart tools, so that any one of us can handle almost any call. We’re also focused on getting your installation right by showing up when we say we will and doing the job right the first time. We want to surprise you (in a good way).
Right now we’re focused on answering your rally questions, particularly for those of you in fiberhoods whose addresses are not yet recognized by our system. We know resolution there has been slow, and we’re speeding that up. Keep the feedback coming, and we’ll keep learning and improving.
I won’t lie—customer service is hard to do at scale and harder to do with a new product. But hard isn’t impossible, and really, it’s our job. No excuses here. Call us, email or chat; we can’t wait to hear from you.
Posted by Alana Karen, Director of Service Delivery, Google Fiber
@GFiberAlana

Welcome to the second full week of the Google Fiber rally! So far this week we’ve had some great conversations with Fiber-curious Kansas Citians at our Fiber Space and throughout the community at locations like the Plaza Library, Hyde Park, Kansas City Kansas Community College and Indian Springs Mall.
Like last week, there are a few common questions that are popping up frequently—so let’s take a moment to clear them up here on our blog:
1. When I tried to pre-register for Fiber, I had to submit my address for review. This was a few days ago and I haven’t heard back yet. What’s going on?
Don’t worry—we have your request and we’re getting to it. We want to make sure we’re thoroughly reviewing every address we receive. This process takes time, but we’re increasing the number of people on our team who are working on this, and we’ll get back to you shortly.
2. I live in an apartment building and I keep getting a pre-registration error. What should I do?
We’re sorry about the inconvenience. We know that we’re having a processing problem with some unit numbers in apartment buildings, but we’re working to fix it. Be sure to fill out our address review form and we’ll get back to you within a few days’ time.
3. I own and rent out property and I want to get Google Fiber. What should I do?
First, ask your tenants to pre-register for Google Fiber. Then, please visit this website and provide us with your contact information. If your fiberhood qualifies, we’ll be in touch with you to discuss the details about hooking up your building(s).
4. I completed my pre-registration without having to pay $10. Am I still pre-registered?
No. If you did not enter your credit, debit or prepaid debit card, you did not complete the pre-registration process yet. Please visit fiber.google.com and pre-register now.
Hopefully this helps. And, as always, if you have any other questions you can just give us a call, chat with us or email us and we'll help you out. Or come see us at the Fiber Space, 1814 Westport Road in Kansas City, MO.
Posted by Rachel Hack, Community Manager, Google Fiber

We’ve been so excited about the number of pre-registrations, visitors to our Fiber Space, and amount of feedback that we’ve seen over the first week of the Google Fiber rally. Your enthusiasm is contagious—and we’re going to help it spread.
Next week, we hope to welcome three more communities in Kansas into our Google Fiber service area. We’re happy to announce that we’ve reached a tentative agreement to bring Fiber to the cities of Westwood, Westwood Hills and Mission Woods, Kan. Pending approval from each of the three City Councils, we plan to include these communities in a future rally for Google Fiber (timing to be announced, so stay tuned).

To be clear, this does not change the construction schedule for eligible homes in Kansas City, Kan. and Central Kansas City, Mo. And homes in North and South Kansas City, Mo. will still be able to pre-register for Fiber in our second rally. Today we are simply adding three new Google Fiber communities for a future rally.
To our new communities, welcome! And to Kansas City, Kan. and Kansas City, Mo., keep the pre-registration going. We can't wait to bring a gig to your fiberhoods soon.
Posted by Kevin Lo, General Manager, Google Access

It’s been five days since we kicked off the Google Fiber Rally in Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri, and we’ve been blown away by the community’s reaction. So far, 40 fiberhoods have qualified for service, more than 2,000 people have visited our Fiber Space, we’ve talked to thousands of people via online and phone customer service, and we’ve distributed upwards of 2,000 ice cream sandwiches from our Fiber trucks.
Through our many conversations, we’ve noticed that some details about Google Fiber may still be a little unclear. So today we’re going to share and answer some of the top questions we’ve been getting about Google Fiber, so that we can keep everyone up-to-date in Kansas City.
1. When are you building to North and South Kansas City, Mo.?
Our first pre-registration phase includes homes in Kansas City, Kan. and homes in Central Kansas City, Mo. But we are definitely committed to serving homes in North and South Kansas City, Mo. in our second pre-registration phase. Residents should stay tuned to google.com/fiber and this blog for more information.
2. I have a business and I can’t pre-register. Why?
We’re focused on making residential connections right now, but we’ll have an announcement about a small business offering soon.
3. How did Google determine fiberhood pre-registration goals?
Like many of our projects at Google, we relied on data. All fiberhoods are different. They range in size and density as well as speed and ease of Fiber construction. For example, houses that are spread out (like in the suburbs) require more time, fiber and labor, and therefore are more difficult to connect than homes in a dense urban environment. So, in those fiberhoods that are more complicated to build, we want to make sure that enough residents will want Fiber service. We don’t want Fiber to be out of reach for anyone—it’s our hope that the pre-registration goals will be practical and attainable.
4. Help! I’m in a fiberhood but I keep getting a pre-registration error.
There are two possible issues here that we're working hard to fix. Some addresses (mostly apartments) with unit numbers are causing errors during pre-registration. Also, the "submit address review" form doesn't always work. In either case, please give us a call, chat with us or email us and we'll help you out.
5. What if I don’t have access to the Internet to learn about Fiber or pre-register?
We know that 25% of Kansas Citians don’t have access to broadband at home. So, to help spread the word about Google Fiber, we have a dedicated street team that visits fiberhoods throughout Kansas City, Kan. and Kansas City, Mo. Our teams pass out flyers (and ice cream!), answer questions about Google Fiber and help pre-register anyone who is interested. Look out for our Google Fiber trucks in a fiberhood near you. We also have a local building, or Fiber Space, that Kansas Citians can visit. Google Fiber team members are there every day of the week to answer questions and help with pre-registration.

6. Why is the construction fee for the Free Internet service so expensive? What do I do if I can’t afford it?
As a Google Fiber customer, you will have a gigabit-ready Fiber cable routed to, and built directly into, your home. Studies show that simply having this connection will add value to your home and will put you on the cutting edge of broadband technology. We’re charging $300 for this construction.
To make the construction fee more manageable, subscribers can break it into payments of $25 per month during the first year, and free for at least the next six years. Over time, this Free Internet service is very affordable—it works out to an average of $3.57 per month over seven years’ time.
7. Why do I have to pay $10 just to pre-register?
Your $10 pre-registration fee will be applied to your Google Fiber service. If your fiberhood qualifies for service, your $10 will go directly to either your first month of service fees (for our Gigabit +TV or Gigabit Internet plans), or to your $300 construction fee (for the Free Internet plan). If your fiberhood does not qualify for service, your $10 will be refunded.
8. How did you choose which public buildings you would connect for free in each fiberhood?
When we announced that we’d bring Google Fiber to Kansas City, Kan. and Kansas City, Mo. we also committed to building free, 1 Gigabit per second connections to the cities’ choice of public buildings. Both cities collaborated on a list of the public buildings that they wanted to connect, and then they gave the list to us. We will bring Fiber to these buildings that are located in qualified fiberhoods.
We’ll try and update this blog as we get more questions in. And in the meantime, if you have your own burning questions, there are a lot of resources you can turn to:
• Read our online FAQ, which has a lot of common questions and answers.
• Follow Google Fiber on Twitter to find out where our street teams will be visiting
• Chat live with a Fiber team member online
• Email Google Fiber support
• Call Google Fiber support
• Visit our Fiber Space and learn about Fiber in-person with our team members (RSVP if you want to avoid a long wait time)

We’re here to help, so get in touch!
Posted by Kevin Lo, General Manager, Google Access

Cross-posted on the Official Google Blog.
Our goal is to build products that will help improve our users’ lives. And when it comes to Internet access, it's clear what provides a better user experience:
Fast is better than slow. On the web, nobody wants to wait for a video to buffer or a website to load.
Abundance is better than scarcity. There’s a plethora of rich content available online—and it’s increasingly only available to people who have the speeds and means to access it.
Choice is better than no choice. Competition and choice help make products better for users.
With that in mind, we embarked on a journey to bring ultra-high speeds to Kansas City, Kan. and Kansas City, Mo. And today, we’re excited to announce Google Fiber. Google Fiber is 100 times faster than today’s average broadband. No more buffering. No more loading. No more waiting. Gigabit speeds will get rid of these pesky, archaic problems and open up new opportunities for the web. Imagine: instantaneous sharing; truly global education; medical appointments with 3D imaging; even new industries that we haven’t even dreamed of, powered by a gig.
When we asked people what they value in their Internet service, the majority of them simply said, “choice.” So we listened. Kansas Citians will choose where we install and when. We’ve divided Kansas City into small communities we call “fiberhoods.” To get service, each fiberhood needs a critical mass of their residents to pre-register. The fiberhoods with the highest pre-registration percentage will get Google Fiber first. Households in Kansas City can pre-register for the next six weeks, and they can rally their neighbors to pre-register, too. Once the pre-registration period is over, residents of the qualified fiberhoods will be able to choose between three different packages (including TV).
It’s easy to forget how revolutionary high-speed Internet access was in the 1990s. Not only did broadband kill the screeching sound of dial-up, it also spurred innovation, helping to create amazing new services as well as new job opportunities for many thousands of Americans. But today the Internet is not as fast as it should be. While high speed technology exists, the average Internet speed in the U.S. is still only 5.8 megabits per second (Mbps)—slightly faster than the maximum speed available 16 years ago when residential broadband was first introduced. Access speeds have simply not kept pace with the phenomenal increases in computing power and storage capacity that’s spurred innovation over the last decade, and that’s a challenge we’re excited to work on.
To find out more about the different service packages and the pre-registration process see our Google Fiber Blog, which we’ll regularly update with new information over the coming weeks. This is an exciting new project for Google and we can’t wait to get homes connected to Google Fiber in Kansas City—because we’re pretty certain that what people do with a gig will be awesome.
Posted by Milo Medin, Vice President, Access Services

When we announced that we wanted to provide a community with Internet access more than 100 times faster than what most Americans enjoy today, we asked who was interested in working with us. More than 1,100 cities raised their hands, and those of you in Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri won us over with your enthusiasm for better, faster web connections.
Today as we launch Google Fiber in Kansas City, we’re continuing with the same approach. Instead of us deciding where and when we install, we’re asking you.
Tell us if you want Google Fiber in two easy steps:
1. Pre-register: Starting today, if you live in an eligible Kansas City household, you can pre-register by visiting google.com/fiber. All you need to do for pre-registration is provide some basic information (like your name and address) and pay a $10 deposit.
2. Rally your neighbors: Over the next six weeks, get your neighbors and friends to pre-register too.
Here’s why: Google Fiber works better when communities are connected together. So we’ve divided Kansas City into small communities we call “fiberhoods.” We’ll install only where there’s enough interest, and we’ll install sooner in fiberhoods where there’s more interest. You can check out your fiberhood’s pre-registration goal, as well as a real-time status update of all Kansas City fiberhoods on our rankings page.
The rally lasts for six weeks and ends on September 9. When you participate, not only will you help bring Google Fiber to your home, you’ll also help bring it to your community—if your fiberhood reaches its pre-registration goal, we’ll also connect community buildings like schools, libraries and hospitals with free Gigabit Internet.
After the rally, we’ll let you know if your fiberhood has reached its goal. If so, you can sign up for your service package. The first homes will get service shortly after the rally ends, and all qualifying neighborhoods will receive service before the end of 2013.
In the meantime, you can come visit Kansas City’s Google Fiber Space, where you can experience a gigabit first-hand and check out TV in crystal clear high definition. The Fiber Space will be open daily starting this Saturday, July 28. We’ll also be holding events throughout the community during the rally. Stay tuned for more on the Google Fiber KC Blog.
And remember, if you want Google Fiber, you need to pre-register your home by September 9 and tell your neighbors to pre-register too. Let’s do this for Kansas City! Posted by Kevin Lo, General Manager, Google Access

For over a year we’ve been talking to a lot of people in Kansas City who’ve helped shape Google Fiber. It turns out you want speed, choice, great content and simplicity.
So we’ve put together three service packages that will be available if your fiberhood gets installed:
Gigabit + Google Fiber TV: What’s better than a gig of Internet? A gig plus TV, designed for how you watch today and how you’ll watch tomorrow. Google Fiber TV carries hundreds of channels (including your local favorites) and tens of thousands of shows on demand in crystal clear HD. With eight tuners and 2TB of DVR storage, you’ll never have to miss a show again. You’ll also get a brand new Nexus 7 tablet that you can use as your remote control. Gigabit + Google Fiber TV will cost $120 per month, and we’ll waive the $300 construction fee.
Gigabit Internet: With a gig, you can do everything you love on the web at speeds more than 100 times faster than what most Americans enjoy today. This package will include a gigabit-enabled network box with advanced WiFi and 1TB of cloud storage on Google Drive. Gigabit Internet will cost $70 per month, and we’ll waive the $300 construction fee.
Free Internet: We know that not everyone is ready to commit to a gig just yet. But we want to make sure you have the opportunity to upgrade when you’re ready. So if you pre-register and your fiberhood gets installed, you’ll have the option to get a 5 megabit per second (Mbps) connection for zero monthly charge, and your home will be wired and ready for the switch. The Free Internet option will cost $0 per month, although you will have to pay a $300 construction fee (which can either be paid at once, or in $25 monthly installments).
You can read more details about the different packages on the Google Fiber site and in the FAQ. Whether you want the full Google Fiber experience including TV, the simple excitement of a gig, or today’s speeds with tomorrow’s options—we’re excited to share the possibilities of a faster Internet.
Posted by Kevin Lo, General Manager, Google Access